The results of the ITU World Telecommunication Standardization Assembly 2016 (WTSA-16) and standards for future smart 5G systems were the key topics discussed at a meeting of 14 high-level ICT industry executives (CTOs) with the senior management of the ITU Telecommunication Standardization Sector (ITU-T) and the ITU Radiocommunication Sector (ITU-R).
The CTO meeting was held at the outset of ITU Telecom World 2016 in Bangkok, Thailand, and provided the private sector an opportunity to brief, advise and exchange views with ITU on industry needs and standardization priorities.
Review of the outcomes of WTSA-16
The meeting gave CTOs the opportunity to learn more about the key outcomes of WTSA-16. These outcomes include the revised Study Group structure, mandates and leadership roles; as well as new and revised WTSA Resolutions, including the revised Resolution 68, which calls on the ITU secretariat to continue organizing CTO meetings to assist in identifying and coordinating standardization priorities and subjects.
The CTO meeting took note of the conclusions of the Global Standards Symposium (GSS-16) held the day prior to WTSA-16, which tackled the theme of 'Security, Privacy and Trust in Standardization'. The conclusions of GSS-16 underlined the need to support and promote principles of transparency and technological integrity; mitigate the risks posed by IoT botnets using security standards; and assess the impact of quantum computing on security, privacy and trust.
CTOs present in Bangkok also reviewed the results of a pre-WTSA 'CxO meeting' of high-level industry executives representing leading ICT companies, with the Arab and African regions especially well-represented. This meeting discussed strategies to accelerate the deployment of gigabit-speed broadband access networks and the new industry dynamics introduced by the rise of over-the-top (OTT) services.
5G technology and standards landscape
One of the key results of WTSA-16 was the agreement of a new Resolution on non-radio aspects of international mobile telecommunications (IMT), which calls on ITU-T to strengthen and accelerate its standardization activities in the field of IMT-2020 (5G). The CTOs were briefed on the progress of the ITU-T Focus Group on network aspects of IMT-2020 and its work streams on architecture and fixed-mobile convergence, the evolution of software defined networking, end-to-end network management, and information-centric networking. The Focus Group will conclude its work by the close of 2016, at which point its findings will be submitted to ITU-T Study Groups to inform their development of international 2 standards. The meeting was informed of a recent cooperation agreement1 between ITU and the NGMN Alliance, highlighting the mutual intent of both organizations to coordinate their contributions to the development of 5G technology and architecture.