In November 2011, the IEEE Broadcast Technology Society gathered with twelve other broadcast organizations at the inaugural Future of Broadcast Television Summit in Shanghai, China to sign the FoBTV Joint Declaration. The FoBTV Joint declaration recognizes that broadcasting – the transmission of information to an unlimited number of listeners and viewers – is “the most spectrum-efficient wireless delivery means for popular real-time and file-based media content.” It calls for a definition of the requirements of future terrestrial broadcast systems, the exploration of unified terrestrial broadcast standards, and the promotion of technology sharing. If efforts are successful, terrestrial broadcasting will one day bring information and entertainment to both rich and poor, rural communities and cities, and both at-home and mobile users, conserving money and resources in the process.

The IEEE Broadcast Technology Society is one of the founding organizations of the FoBTV Summit along with 12 other organizations representing North and South America, Europe, and Asia. FoBTV founding members recognize that terrestrial broadcasting can play an important role in connecting people and societies. Authors of the declaration recognize how different TV standards developed in different regions during the era of analog, how formats continue to divide and multiply in the digital age, and how modern technology can solve this problem.