Introduction

This introduction presents an overview of the key concepts discussed in the subsequent chapters of this book. The book describes the evolution of an international telephone network was a difficult and frustrating process. It explores problems in a historical perspective by describing the enormous difficulties encountered in establishing interconnection between Europe and North America. The book demonstrates that the truism by analyzing the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) work in managing the radio frequency spectrum. It focuses on the radio frequency spectrum in surveying the post-war political challenges confronting management of the spectrum. The book examines the seemingly minor point of deliberate interference to international broadcasting. It discusses a journey into the murky world of the role of specialized international organizations vis-à-vis the accepted limits of state sovereignty. The book looks at other major issues and influences that are shaping the ITU as it enters the twenty-first century.