World Telecommunication And Information Society Day
May 17 is World Telecommunication and Information Society Day. The purpose is to help raise awareness of the possibilities the Internet and other information and communication technologies (ICT) can bring to societies and economies.
History
May 17 marks the anniversary of the signing of the first International Telegraph Convention and the creation of the International Telecommunication Union.
The long name for this day marks the merger of two nearly-identical official days in 2006 by the United Nations. One of the two days, World Telecommunication Day, was celebrated every May 17 since 1969. It marked the founding of the International Telecommunication Union on May 17, 1865.
The second day merged into this day was World Information Society Day was also celebrated on May 17 since its inception in 2006. Its purpose was to focus on the importance of many issues in the area of information and communication technologies.
