The telecommunications industry encompasses telephony, radio, television, internet and broadband as well as satellite communications and more. Federal and state agencies regulate much of the telecommunications industry within the United States, so these agencies can be a great source of information. The U.S. Federal Communications Commission (FCC) oversees all communications by radio, television, wire, satellite, and cable in all 50 states, the District of Columbia and U.S. Territories. In addition, it produces research and reports that are available to the public. The FCC includes a Wireless Telecommunications Bureau.

As a public utility, each state is tasked with regulating and reporting on telecommunications carriers and service providers. For example, you might search the internet for telecommunications New Jersey site:.gov to find the state of New Jersey's page on the Division of Telecommunications External. You can find annual reports from these divisions freely available on the state websites.

Globally, each individual country will have its own regulatory bodies that govern various telecommunications systems. This guide will not provide an exhaustive list of resources outside of the United States, but many of the included resources focus on other regions of the world, or they take a global perspective.

General telecommunications resources and resources on the telecommunications industry as a whole are listed below. Resources on more specific sectors, such as radio & television broadcasting, wired telecommunications (telephony, cable, internet), wireless, and satellite communications can be found on the individual sub-pages of this guide. You can also search the Library's catalog, library databases and online resources for those more specific industries.