ITU to lead cross-sector ICT standardization

Delegates at the Global Standards Symposium (GSS-12).including government ministers, private-sector executives and the standardization community have urged the International Telecommunications Union (ITU) to create standardization mechanisms to serve the needs of vertical markets that are dependent on information and communication technologies (ICTs) technologies.

"ICT now cuts across all industries via the common platform of the IP-based network. But technology is applied in different ways by different sectors. To accelerate innovation in areas like e-health, intelligent transport systems and smart grids, GSS-12 participants encouraged ITU to create effective, flexible mechanisms that allow the ICT sector to more effectively collaborate with vertical-market standards makers and industry players," said a press note.

Malcolm Johnson, Director of the Telecommunication Standardization Bureau, ITU said, “World Telecommunication Standardization Assembly (WTSA-12) is our chance to streamline the structure of our standards work and make sure that it meets the demands of today's fast-paced Information Society. ITU as the only international intergovernmental standards organization will be instrumental in ushering in the next period of ICT development, and over the next two weeks we will determine the most important areas of focus and assign them to the relevant expert groups.”