Posted by Sabine Dahmen-Lhuissier 7190 Hits

History of ETSI

ETSI was set up in 1988 by the European Conference of Postal and Telecommunications Administrations (CEPT) in response to proposals from the European Commission.

There have been many significant events and achievements since ETSI was created – and many of them have had a global impact.

The list below highlights some of the landmarks in our history.

2019: Re-election of Luis Jorge Romero as Director-General (2019 to 2024) 2019: First Releases of 5G ready for implementation 2018: Number of standards published passes 40 000 mark 2017: The Radio Equipment Directive (RED) completed its transition period supported by Harmonised Standards from ETSI 2016: oneM2M release 2 specifications published 2015: oneM2M release 1 specifications published 2013: Regulation 1025/2012 replaced Directive 98/34/EC. ETSI is officially confirmed as a European Standards Organization, ETSI can be mandated by EC to produce standards and specifications to meet policy needs, esp. legislative needs (e.g. Harmonised Standards), ICT standardization distinctly recognized, ETSI direct participation model recognized 2012: Number of standards published passes 30 000 mark 2012: ETSI launches Cloud Standards Co-ordination at request of the EC 2012: ETSI is a founding partner in the launch of the oneM2M partnership initiative for the global deployment of Machine-to-Machine (M2M) communications systems 2011: Election of Luis Jorge Romero as Director-General (2011 to 2016 - 1st term of 5 years & 2016 to 2019 - prolongation until next election) 2009: First LTE Release completed 2008: Number of standards produced passes 20 000 mark 2006: Introduction of Industry Specification Groups (ISGs) 2006: Election of Walter Weigel as Director-General (2006 to 2011) 2002: First releases of UMTS ready for implementation 2002: Number of standards produced passes 10 000 mark 2001: The ETSI Bake-Off service is re-branded as ETSI  PlugtestsTM 2000: ETSI introduces Testing and Test Control Notation version 3 (TTCN-3), which has gone on to become a globally successful test specification language 2000: Launch of ‘eEurope’ by the European Union – ETSI participates to provide standards for ‘An Information Society for All’ 2000: Number of standards produced passes 5 000 mark 1999: The ETSI Bake-Off service (later to become Plugtests™) is created 1999: ETSI introduces paperless meetings 1999: ETSI makes all standards freely available on the web 1998: ETSI is a founding partner in the Third Generation Partnership Project (3GPP™) 1998: Directive 98/34/EC: Replaces Directive 83/189/EEC, ETSI officially recognised as a European Standards Organization 1997: Creation of the ETSI PAS process that enables an ETSI partner to submit Publicly Available Specifications for adoption by ETSI 1997: ETSI starts to create European Standards (ENs), replacing European Telecommunications Standards (ETSs) 1996: ETSI Board created to replace the Technical Assembly 1995: Number of standards produced passes 1 000 mark 1995: ETSI publishes the Terrestrial Trunked Radio (TETRA) standard for use by emergency services and others 1993: ETSI establishes its Intellectual Property Rights policy 1993: ETSI officially confirmed as a European Standards Organization under directive 83/189/EEC 1992: ETSI introduces distribution of standards documents to National Standards Organizations via satellite 1990: Global Standards Collaboration process launched, to enhance co-operation between standards organisations around the world 1990: ETSI establishes Joint Technical Committee with the European Broadcasting Union to produce broadcast-related standards (CENELEC joined in 1995) 1990: ETSI, CEN and CENELEC sign joint co-operation agreement 1990: Election of Karl-Heinz Rosenbrock as Director-General (1990 to 2006) 1989: GSM committee transferred from CEPT to ETSI 1988: First GSM specs ready for implementation July 1988: First ETSI Technical Assembly Mid-1988: Secretariat begins work May 1988: Professor Diodato Gagliardi appointed as Director-General of ETSI (1988 to 1990) April 1988: The first stone of ETSI’s new purpose-built headquarters laid March 1988: First ETSI General Assembly January 1988: Creation of ETSI 1987: GSM Memorandum of Understanding signed 1987: The Directors-General of the European Conference of Postal and Telecommunications Administrations (CEPT) take a decision in principle to found ETSI 1987: The EC publishes a Green Paper which first floated the idea of a European Telecommunications Standards Institute 1986: The European Commission (EC) leads a fact-finding mission on telecommunications to the US

Posted by Sabine Dahmen-Lhuissier 14331 Hits

Statement regarding IPR

We issue the following public statement to clarify that ETSI does not take any position regarding the correct interpretation of its IPR policy and its IPR Guide:

The ETSI IPR Policy and the IPR Guide texts stand as independent documents in their own right.

It is reiterated that specific licensing terms and negotiations are commercial matters between the companies and shall not be addressed within ETSI. The basic principle of the ETSI IPR regime remains FRAND with no specific preference for any licensing model.

See more information related to IPR on our dedicated webpage.

Posted by Claire Boyer 37867 Hits

Our strategy

Our strategy

Designing tomorrow's world

ETSI strategy in brief (leaflet)

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ETSI's Strategic Position Worldwide Community Innovative and market driven Recognized European Standardization Organization with global impact

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Our mission ETSI's mission is to provide platforms where interested parties come together and collaborate on the development and promotion of standards for Information and Communication Technology (ICT) systems and services, used globally for the benefit of all.

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Our vision Designing tomorrow's world, ETSI is at the forefront of new Information and Communication Technology, leading the development of standards that enable a sustainable and securely connected society.

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ETSI's Five Strategic Directions ETSI aims to maintain and strengthen its strategic position through a number of Key Strategic Directions, each defining a major area of development for ETSI. Together, they define ETSI's journey to achieve its ambitions and some of the expected major stages of that journey.

Being at the Heart of Digital Being an Enabler of Standards Being Global Being Versatile Being Inclusive

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Titled Designing tomorrow’s world, our strategy develops from our mission and values, and defines our strategic directions to fulfil an ambitious vision of ETSI’s future.

To develop our strategy, we have taken a high-level view of the main socioeconomic, policy-making and technology trends characterizing the ecosystem where ETSI operates and that may impact our activities.

We have considered a wide range of factors, including climate change, the circular economy, energy efficiency and the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals, the role of SMEs, European policy initiatives and the EC’s industrial strategy. From a more technology-driven perspective, we have also considered cutting-edge innovation in ICT, ranging from Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning to developments in cloud, photonics and quantum computing.

In addition, we have re-examined the changing role of ICT in society manifested through digital transformation and the evolution to a data-driven society, the increasing roles of virtualization and cloud computing as well as issues related to security and privacy. Finally, we have explored the roles of the main players in the ICT ecosystem, the importance of standardization in different industry sectors, and the importance of learning, education and skills.

The successful development of Designing tomorrow’s world has been a collective exercise, depending on the contribution and consensus of all our members. 

ETSI's Strategic Position

ETSI operations are underpinned by a number of basic principles that constitute its core and from which its strategy and activities stem. These principles are:

Worldwide community ETSI is inclusive with a global membership representing a wide range of stakeholders, a global network of partnerships ETSI works across all sectors of industry and society that make, use or rely on ICT ETSI favours partnering, promoting global collaboration ETSI activities are driven by its members ETSI promotes the knowledge and benefits of standards Innovative and market driven ETSI works at the forefront of emerging and developing technologies ETSI’s work is based on timeliness, quality and responsiveness for the benefit of the market, consumers and society at large ETSI delivers an extensive portfolio of ICT standards with an end-to-end perspective ETSI produces standards aimed at being adopted by all markets, even the most competitive ETSI welcomes and encourages innovation contributed to all its activities, including standards, methodologies, rules and processes ETSI enables the availability of world class technologies for all through standardization ETSI promotes the visibility and availability of its standards  Recognized European Standardization Organization with global impact ETSI is fully compliant with WTO TBT provisions and EU Regulations ETSI adopts a consensus approach in its decision making ETSI supports EU strategic objectives, regulatory requirements and policies ETSI in its standardization work strives for a sustainable future ETSI supports and promotes the EU Industrial Strategy objectives of becoming more green, digital and resilient 

Our mission

ETSI’s mission is to provide platforms where interested parties come together and collaborate on the development and promotion of standards  for Information and Communication Technology (ICT) systems and services, used globally for the benefit of all.

Our vision

Designing tomorrow’s world, ETSI is at the forefront of new Information and Communication Technology, leading the development of standards that enable a sustainable and securely connected society.

ETSI's Five Strategic Directions                                                                         

ETSI aims to maintain and strengthen its strategic position through a number of Key Strategic Directions, each defining a major area of development for ETSI. Together, they define ETSI’s journey to achieve its ambitions and some of the expected major stages of that journey.

      1. Being at the Heart of Digital

ETSI is at the forefront of the standardization of new and existing digital technologies and the preferred point of call for ICT related standardization. ETSI enables comprehensive end-to-end ICT architectures and technologies, including device, network and cloud.

      2. Being an Enabler of Standards

ETSI provides support and a range of tools to enable the identification of the needs and requirements for standards and their production and adoption. ETSI is the enabler of standards in response to regulatory, legislative, policy and market needs

     3. Being Global

ETSI creates standards intended for global use, with a membership from across the world and partnerships covering all regions and relevant sectors for ICT. ETSI tailors its processes to influence worldwide standards. ETSI builds on its ESO status to contribute to the European economy.

    4. Being Versatile

ETSI innovates in its working methods, creating room for wide participation, innovation, time to deployment, and the global acceptance of its standards. ETSI may work with developer communities to support the creation and maintenance of test suites and tools and additional standard-related software material.

   5. Being Inclusive

ETSI’s membership represents real market and societal needs, from local to global, leveraging the digitization of business and industry, circular economy and the sustainable development of modern society. ETSI comprises large and small companies and research organizations, as well as other business, consumer, societal and environmental stakeholders. 

To learn more, read our full Strategy brochure in eBook or Download the PDF.

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