IEC, ISO and ITU awarded Emmy for MPEG-4

At a ceremony in Hollywood, the US Academy of Television Arts & Sciences awarded a prestigious Emmy Award for engineering excellence to the IEC, ITU (International Telecommunication Union) and ISO (International Organization for Standardization) for their work in producing the advanced video coding standard known as ITU-T H.264 or ISO/IEC 14496-10, Advanced Video Coding (AVC).

Malcolm Johnson, Director of the ITU’s standardization bureau (left) with Scott Jameson, Chair of ISO/IEC JTC 1: Information Technology Standards, and Director of Standards Strategy at Hewlett-Packard (behind), received the award on behalf of the three organizations at a ceremony in Hollywood on 23 August 2008.
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President speaks at CIGRE session

The IEC was represented at the annual session of CIGRE (International Council on Large Electric Systems), held in Paris, France. IEC President Jacques Régis praised the way in which the two organizations are working together, stating that close collaboration between the two organizations resulted in the creation of a new IEC Technical Committee, TC 115, which will address DC (direct current) voltages above 100 kV. Regarding AC (alternating current) high voltages, the Joint IEC-CIGRE Coordinating Group (JICCG) provided a roadmap report for standards development. The recommendations identified which IEC TCs will undertake the work.

IEC at APEC Meeting in Peru

Amaury Santos and IECEE Executive Secretary Pierre de Ruvo were present at the seventh Standards and Conformance Conference organized by APEC (Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation) in Cuzco, Peru. Both Santos and de Ruvo briefed the audience about IEC activities and its Conformity Assessment Systems.

Establishment of TC 115, HVDC

The SMB approved the establishment of IEC Technical Committee 115: High Voltage Direct Current (HVDC) transmission for DC voltages above 100 kV. The secretariat of the new TC has been allocated to the Chinese National Committee.

One of the dilemmas facing governments and utilities today is how to supply large amounts of electrical energy for growing populations in a way that is both efficient and has a minimal impact on the environment. "Ultra high voltage" offers the potential to meet this challenge.

IEEE agreement expanded

The agreement between the IEC and the IEEE (Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers) that allows IEEE Standards to be converted into IEC International Standards has been expanded to include a procedure permitting joint, parallel development of a project in both organizations leading to a Joint IEC/IEEE International Standard. The addendum to the original IEC-IEEE Dual Logo Agreement, signed in October 2002, establishes procedures for IEC and IEEE to consult about the need to establish new standards, to initiate a joint development project, to prepare and circulate draft standards and to vote on those draft standards. It also includes processes for the maintenance of approved standards to keep them up to date.