On June 30, 1970, Pittsburgh Mayor Peter Flaherty made the first videoconference call with Alcoa Chairman and CEO John Harper using AT&T's Picturephone system. The service opened in Pittsburgh the next day and later expanded to other major cities, with some 450 sets in use by 1973. Although not a commercial success, it marked the first time videocalling moved from demo booths to desks, and from concept to practical business tool.

To celebrate the 50th anniversary of this landmark event, current Pittsburgh Mayor William Peduto and Alcoa Chairman Michael G. Morris will use Picturephones to video chat, as their predecessors did a half century ago, on Tuesday, June 30. We hope that you'll join our livestream at 10:15 a.m. (EDT) to reflect on this seminal event, which heralded today's ubiquitous videocalling and telecommuting technologies.

Following the call, a panel of CMU scholars will host a live Q&A, discussing the history and legacy of the Picturephone's launch.

For more information, visit the event's information page.