Two engineering organizations – one based in the U.S. and one based in the U.K. – that both use the “SCTE” initialism and/or moniker have signed a memorandum of understanding that, they claim, aims to address brand confusion between them.
Those orgs -- the Society of Cable Telecommunications Engineers (SCTEUS) and the Society for Broadband Professionals (SCTEUK) – have exactly not been the best of friends over the years.
They didn’t release all of the terms of the MOU and specifically how they intend to reduce brand confusion, but said it “lays the foundation for the development of a longer-term relationship between the industry’s two leading technical education organizations and their affiliated brands.”
Notably, the SCTE (the U.S.-based organization) operates globally under a different brand – the International Society of Broadband Experts (ISBE). It introduced ISBE as a brand in September 2014, and at the time said it was to “eliminate existing brand confusion,” an apparent reference to the U.K.-based org that was founded in 1945.
“Our two societies share a common goal of improving engineering standards and skills throughout our industry,” said Michael Thornton, president, Society for Broadband Professionals, in a statement. “Eliminating confusion between our brands is the first step towards global collaboration that can help the industry to maintain – and even increase – its competitive edge.”
“The rapid advance of technology is spawning the availability of new products and services that are changing the face of communication,” added Mark Dzuban, president and CEO, the Society of Cable Telecommunications Engineers. “The intent of our two organizations is to ensure that cable and broadband operators and technology partners have access to the training resources they need to make the most of those opportunities.”
