Beat Bächi, Barbara Bonhage, David Gugerli, Stefan Kaufmann

On the occasion of a Brainstorming-Workshop in September 2002, held in Zurich, a framework for a research agenda was discussed. The aim of the meeting was to ex-change ideas, concepts, themes, and attention patterns in the history of telecommuni-cation. During the workshop it was stated that a vast and mainly deserted research field had to be circumscribed. Below, we outline the central findings of the workshop, present a short commented bibliography and a call for papers for a workshop taking place in Zurich, on May 15-17 2003.

Findings
Even if one disagrees with the definition of the German sociologist Niklas Luhmann, to take society as the sum of accessible communication, there can be no doubt that the possibilities telecommunications offer are shaping all aspects of public and private life. Admittedly, such shaping does not occur in one way only: technological and social change is inalienable interlocked. Structuring social processes by technical means and structuring the social shape of technology are the two sides of one medal. Develop-ments in telecommunications are neither a mere matter of course nor are they self-explanatory. What is technological feasible or considered as feasible is bound to social expectations, political decisions, and economic wants to societal conditions gener-ated, reproduced and transformed through the means of telecommunications.
On the basis of these assumptions we suggest three conceptual considerations to be-gin a historiography of telecommunication in 20th-century Europe with: EuroNets - EuroChannels - EuroVisions. Firstly, Networks focus on a specific understanding of what is the core of telecommunications; secondly, Channels refer to the rigid, last but not least materially determined structuring of the possibilities of social communication; thirdly, Visions refer to varieties in dealing with existent or projected technical struc-tures, motivated by different social embeddings of telecommunication. We will con-clude on the European dimension of this analytical framework. We will point out the different levels of union, on which Europe is coming about and configuring itself through its networks of communications. The overarching question is, how did tele-communication technologies hinder or enhance the real or imagined boundaries inside and of Europe?

Nets
Telecommunication in 20th century refers to the technical, that is electrical or elec-tronic, transmission of data as a transliterated act of communication of any kind over distance. Insofar nets, wired or wireless, separated or integrated, can be considered as a core element of telecommunication. Therefore the concept not only refers to classical communication technologies as the plain old telegraph or telephone, but also to the whole set of connections between terminals and devices, to all forms of electronically transmitted information and transactions, to operations like telephoning as well as remote control or remote monitoring.
With this first research area we refer to the development, production, differentiation, and adoption of infrastructures of communication, to the genesis of material, formal, and spatial standards and rules, being involved in the implementation of networks. And, of course, there are no networks without net workers: social actors - in particular institutions - constructing, operating and using the nets. An institutional perspective therefore is an adequate point to start with such a kind of a historical analysis. We are looking for the knowledge and expectations circulating among the main actors, the ex-isting interests and the connections within and between organized actors, the strate-gies and procedures enhancing the implementation of specific technical settings, de-vices, and standards. The four main institutional actors are: the community of engi-neers; International standardization committees, like the CCITT, ITU, etc., working on the problem of operability and connectivity; National postal organizations combining national interests with compatibility on international levels; Companies, as suppliers and important customers for telecommunication services.
Three themes are of special interest for bringing to light the hidden paths between or-ganizational problems, system design and political economy:
(1) The problem of redundancy of technologies in the communication field, which poses the question, why to engage or participate in a certain established technology or tech-nological project.
(2) transformations within the institutional framework, like the dissolution of the PTT's monopoly
(3) failed projects as for example the Swiss IFS (Integriertes Fernmeldesystem; the "Swiss version" of the later introduced ISDN) or similar projects of Siemens, Germany and in France.

Channels
Telecommunication is a specific means of channeling or structuring societal life, it is part of the formation of social standards, rules and norms, guiding public and private life. In a very basic sense access to telecommunication services regulates exclusion and inclusion to specific network based forms of society, which is merely the most basic form of channeling social life. Forms of telecommunication are also forcing specific ways of social action; they are on the one hand defining limits of what is possible and on the other hand are enabling new ways of social interaction. Therefore conditions of successful communication are bound to compatibility of (changing) technical as well as (changing) social structures and social habits.
This is why our second field of analysis refers to three dimension of channeling social life by the development, differentiation, and adaptation of telecommunication stan-dards and infrastructures: the question of accompanying formal frames, the material-ity of communication and the logic of techniques.
(1) Regarding formal frames we look at the juridical and economical control over infra-structures, for access reservations and restrictions, technically installed or economically forced. This is a broad field implying also problems of public or private security and con-trol, of crime and political subversion and the role of institutional outsiders like radio amateurs or hacker communities.
(2) The concept of the materiality of communication refers to semiotic standards as well as to the communicative accomplishment of technological standards. Specific seman-tics are forced by technological restrictions (e.g. in the case of communication by tele-graph), by technical formatting (e.g. the invention of Headers in e-mail) or by media specific situations of communication (e.g. the irritating situation of calling: the crea-tion of intimacy while being physically and visually separated). A good point to start ob-servations are explicit formulated or generally known rules or norms, referring to the use of medias, incidents of "communicative accidents", like channel specific misunder-standings or unintended "misuses".
(3) Related to the materiality of communication, dealing more with the acts of commu-nication itself, the concept of the logic of techniques refers to institutional levels of structuring communication processes and organizations in a compatible way. Here the questions arises, how topologies of networks (hierarchies, centralization, distribution) have an impact on the organization of institutions. "Network" e.g. emerges as a meta-phor shaping whole institutions (like the military way of thinking of "network-centric warfare") and enterprises on the same logic communication nets in times of the inter-net are usually operating: Defining small units for special purposes, avoiding vulnerable centers and concentrations, stresses flexibility, interconnectivity, interactivity, interop-erability. Studies in the materiality of communication and the logic of techniques clar-ify an essential part of the interrelation of technology and society.

Visions
The steps of the implementation of telecommunications are accompanied by expecta-tions and promises, by fears and warnings, by surprises and unexpected results. The shaping of society by means of telecommunication is not a kind of foreseen, planned or intended process. If one has to stress the factor of the shaping of society by technical systems one can also emphasize the shaping of technology by social and cultural proc-esses. There are the great visions and horrors, that may effect the interaction with tele-communication, but there are also small tactics and strategies motivated by specific expectations leading to unpredictable forms of dealing with telecommunications, to variations in directions of developments and in technical devices as well as to variations in the way techniques are integrated in public and every day life.
Turning to the third field of analysis, again three dimensions are of particular interest: the vision (and horror) to bridge spatial divisions, the different cultural practices in the use of telecommunications and telecommunications as a means of social differentia-tion. For all these kinds of social adaptations of technologies as for the analysis of the concept of channels one has to leave the narrow sense of the institutional perspective to observe how telecommunication works in broader societal context. An innovative testing could be to look at telecommunications through the perspective of events, e.g. exhibitions, sports, war, terror attacks, or through phenomena as na-tional/international tourism, internationalization of finances, etc. in order to observe the direction of developments. New applications, drawn up in the context of such events, may for example have introduced new forms of acceptance.
(1) Referring to the implementation and spread of telecommunication it could be enlightening to analyze in which contexts of technological development the old popu-lar visions to "defeat" the spatial dimension and to overcome societal differences has been evoked (e.g. obviously with the telegraph, with the internet, but not with the tele-phone and broadcasting). To what spatial extend did that refer: to the global or inter-national context (like the internet-hype of the 1990s or Al Gores Digital Earth Project), a specific European one (like "Eurovision") or a national one (like in the case of public ra-dio)? How and in which contexts do those visions structure networks? The alter ego of these visions about overcoming differences through media presence is the horror on the overall presence of a "big brother". Here in a deep sense the political dimension of telecommunication becomes obvious. How, in combination with which technologies are those visions evoked and provoke resistance (e.g. thinking of the shifting connota-tions of surveillance with authoritarian regimes to liberal control societies, or in the dif-ferences of radio use by the amateurs and in Bertold Brechts "Radiotheorie")?
(2) With the focus on cultural practices we stress the contingency in the development of telecommunication structures. Different local, different national contexts engender specific forms of use and functions: new technical devices and modes of communica-tion have to be adapted to traditional styles and are possibly rejected because of in-compatibilities; e.g. just think of the differences in the diffusion of the telephone in western countries or that the success of Minitel was limited to France.
(3) So if here the question arouses what technologies have national or local practices, the differentiation in handling with telecommunications can be carried further to the observation of processes of social differentiation by the means of communication. How do live-style politics change the development or the common use of infrastructures or technical devices, and how is the specific use of telecommunication an expression of social distinction; e.g. group specific semantics and semiotics or designs are developed; "misuses", i.e. different ways in using techniques not indented by producers for exam-ple the phonograph or the radio. This question is all the more important since users are much more prominent in technology since the 1960s.

The European Dimension
To come to the specific European dimension in these developments, processes and phenomena we distinguish between different layers of "Europeaness". The four layers we consider are the homogenization of conditions of living, bilateral standardizations between nations, business or other groups, specific European projects in telecommuni-cations, and the densification of networks in Europe. Nevertheless Europe cannot be considered as the sum of national networks. On each level one has to take into account the tensions between separation and connection, to look on central actors generally tending to separation (like the military), to think of periods of total or partial disintegra-tion (like wartimes etc).
(1) Telecommunication technology can surely be considered an agent of homogeniza-tion of conditions of living in Europe. On structural dimensions the knowledge about, the spread and the handling with telecommunications in itself implies a process of homogenization. But also the extension of communication with all its implications in political, economical and cultural terms tends to equalize living conditions. But within this general process there is potential for contradiction, ambivalence and resistance. Homogenization by means of telecommunication on one side may provoke the en-forcement of frontiers on the other side. Analysis on this topic should look for the inter-play of media specific channels, constituting or perforation boundaries, and user prac-tices. The radio e.g. was generally used to create a new room of national community often explicit in separation and confrontation against neighboring states. Another ex-ample is broadcasting via satellite used by migrants to maintain firm connections with their home countries, often hindering the integration processes in Europe. But immi-grants are often pioneers in using new technologies, so in various ways tensions be-tween integration and separation may be observed.
(2) Similar tensions between homogenization and separation can be explored on an in-stitutional level referring to standardization committees, negotiations and agreements between nations, businesses, or other groups. Tensions between cooperation and com-petition in economical terms or between economical and political intentions are mark-ing the way to Europe.
(3) In defining Europe, and understanding the tensions, the conflicts, the different ideas and interests underlying its construction, one of the core topics is research on the ne-gotiations about, and the operation and control of projects in which the idea of Europe respective European standards are explicit; e.g. Eurovision, EARN (European Academic Research Network), EIN (European Information Network, 1970s), SWIFT (Society for Worldwide Interbank Financial Transactions, 1970s), EAN (European Article Numbering, 1970s), GMS or projects such as the ec-card or Eurocard, addressing to a European clien-tele and creating a kind of European consumer.
(4) In defining, what may constitute Europe one has to step back to look at the concept of networks. New technologies, especially in communications, are reshaping societies space. So how does the materiality, the channeling, and the densification of communi-cation lines reshape the imagination of what Europe is, or may be? If identity, logically as well as psychologically, refers to some kind of alterity, there remains the question: what is the European part of global network(s).