PIMRC conference enjoys today wide respect and represents a new trend in international conferences, one which is well suited to the evolving global market. The foundation for PIMRC was a 1989 workshop on Mobile Communications organised by Prof. Aghvami of King's College with the cooperation of the local IEEE Communication Society Chapter. Fewer than 100 people participated in the workshop to present about thirty technical papers. The workshop was a successful experience for this new industry that was about to explode.

The first PIMRC, as an international symposium, also took place in King's College, with joint sponsorship of the local IEEE Communication Society Chapter and close cooperation with BT laboratories in 1991. Dr. Rowbatham, director of BT Labs, was the chairman, Prof. Aghvami was the organiser and the TPC chair while Dr. Kato and Prof. Pahlavan were the area coordinators in Far East and North America, respectively. This event attracted around 200 participants that include several prominent figures in the industry.

The first PIMRC with an appearance of a major international conference organized in an off-campus facility was in Boston in the year 1992. This year conference attracted more than 500 people from over 25 different countries to present over 180 papers. Since then PIMRC conferences have been attracting a large number of participants from different counties and areas of action.

PIMRC Chronology

PIMRC 1991 in London, UK, inception of the symposium
PIMRC 1992 in Boston, MA, USA, first appearance as a major event with 500 participants
PIMRC 1993 in Yokohama, Japan, first successful IEEE conference in far-east
PIMRC 1994 in The Hague, Netherlands, establishment as a tradition
PIMRC 1995 in Toronto, Ont., Canada, attracted 600 with 270 technical papers
PIMRC 1996 in Taipei, Taiwan, several cabinet ministers contributed into the organization
PIMRC 1997 in Helsinki, Finland
PIMRC 1998 in Boston, MA, USA
PIMRC 1999 in Osaka, Japan
PIMRC 2000 in London, UK, return to the birth place as an established major event
PIMRC 2001 in San Diego, USA, survived despite a number of conference cancellations
PIMRC 2002 in Lisbon, Portugal
PIMRC 2003 in Beijing, China, the first event in a historical country
PIMRC 2004 in Barcelona, Spain, back to Europe with success
PIMRC 2005 in Berlin, Germany
PIMRC 2006 in Helsinki, Finland

2007 will be the first year that a PIMRC conference will be organized in Greece, and in particular in Athens, where the participants will have a great opportunity to enjoy the wonderful weather of Greece and combine business and holiday.