 Welcome to the celebration of the 50th anniversary of CCITT, now known as ITUT. Fifty years of making the standards that have played a massive part in shaping the information and communications technologies and services of today. The International Telecommunication Union is a specialized agency of the United Nations. Founded in 1865, ITU is the oldest treaty-making international organization. The purpose of the union is to maintain and extend international cooperation among all its member states for the improvement and rational use of telecommunications of all kinds. Today, ITU counts 119 member states and some 650 sector members. The union's work is structured around three sectors corresponding to its three main areas of activity. Telecommunication standardization, ITUT, radio communication, ITUR, and telecommunication development, ITUD. The International Telecommunication Union is unique among international organizations in that it was founded on the principle of cooperation between governments and the private sector. Developing internationally-agreed technical and operating standards and defining tariff and accounting principles for international telecommunications services is ITU's oldest activity. In fact, standardization was the initial role of ITU when it was created in 1865 and continued to be the main focus of its work for some time. In 1924 and 1925, two expert groups, CCIF and CCIT, were established with specific responsibility for technical standards. In 1947, these two groups became permanent organs of ITU and in 1956 they merged to form the International Telephone and Telegraph Consultative Committee, CCITT. This signaled a new era for ITU's standardization activity. In 1992, a restructuring of ITU took place, giving the union greater flexibility to adapt to an increasingly complex, interactive and competitive environment. On 1 March 1993, CCITT became ITUT. Telecommunication plays an enormous role in our day-to-day lives and if it wasn't for ITUT recommendations, making a simple telephone call would be close to impossible. ITUT recommendations form the backbone of the world's communication systems. They were vital for the move from analogue to digital transmission, from mechanical to electronic switching and have shaped the new convergence between the telecommunication world and the information technology world. The following are just a few examples. ITUT recommendation E164 provides the structure and functionality for telephone numbers. Without it, we would not be able to communicate internationally. The H323 family of standards has been crucial in fostering the development of new voice-over IP services and remains the most used standard for this job. Without wide acceptance of ITUT's recommendation X509 on public key infrastructure, the rise of e-business would have been very difficult. ITU's work in video coding is also world-leading. H264-AVC is the first truly scalable video codec. Many other ITUT recommendations essential to the development of telecommunication have been published. They cover topics such as data communication, PCM, optical fiber, satellite, cable TV, mobile, DSL, IP, internet, wireless LAN and NGN. ITU has a long history of cooperation with other standardization organizations, forums and consortia worldwide. The cooperation between ITU, the International Organization for Standardization, ISO, and the International Electrotechnical Commission, IEC, is considered an excellent example in global ICT standardization. Also, the successful cooperation between ITU and the Internet Engineering Task Force, IETF, is widely acknowledged and appreciated by the ICT industry. An increased spirit of cooperation has allowed standards to develop at the pace that industry requires and has become all the more essential given the increasingly broad nature of ICT. This is especially true for some of the new hot topics that ITUT is working on. NGN, home networking, IPTV and RFID are work areas that have entered the ITUT portfolio in the recent past. ITUT's international status and the worldwide applicability of its recommendations are key to its reputation as the preeminent provider of ICT standards. ITUT's membership encompasses governments, policy makers and regulators, network operators, equipment manufacturers, software suppliers and regional standards-making organizations. In 1956 CCITT had 50 members. Today, membership reflects a much more diverse ICT world. There are now 190 member states, 354 sector members from industry and regional organizations, and 107 associates. ITUT members are the authors of the standards that have contributed to this goal of making ICTs around the world interoperable and open to all. Having continued in its effort to create an environment in which all partners enjoy working together, ITUT has recognized for its openness, its transparent and efficient working methods, its flexibility and speed to react to market needs, and the excellent return on investment opportunity that membership presents. In December 2004 ITU was named by a panel of leading scholars, one of the world's top 10 most enduring institutions. The award celebrates those institutions that have managed to reinvent themselves time and again and remain market leaders as the unique circumstances of their founding have given way to changing conditions. ITUT and its members will continue to shape the ICT world, providing a solid foundation of standards for the innovators, inventors and implementers of tomorrow.