IBM stands for International Business Machines. The name was adopted in 1924 by the company then known as the Computing-Tabulating-Recording Company (C-T-R), reflecting an ambition to grow beyond the United States. IBM was not founded in 1924: C-T-R had been incorporated in 1911.
What does IBM stand for?
IBM is the abbreviation for International Business Machines. It is the company’s full corporate name, not a description of a single product or a technical term.
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How did the company get the IBM name?
It began as C-T-R
The predecessor company, Computing-Tabulating-Recording Company (C-T-R), was incorporated in New York on June 16, 1911. IBM’s corporate history describes the business as having been formed from several companies. IBM’s account of its origins
The name changed in 1924
C-T-R adopted the name International Business Machines in 1924. That was a renaming, not the year the company was founded. IBM’s history says Thomas J. Watson chose the broader name to express his global ambitions for the business. IBM’s corporate history
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Why “International Business Machines”?
The name signaled a company seeking business beyond its original U.S. base. In its historical account, IBM describes expansion from operations in the United States, Canada, Germany and Britain toward markets in Europe and South America. By the late 1930s, it says, the company operated factories in 10 cities across six countries. These are figures from IBM’s own account of its history, not independent measurements. IBM’s international history
What does the name mean for IBM today?
The expansion behind the name is historical context; the words are not a precise inventory of everything IBM does now. IBM currently describes its business as bringing together software, consulting and infrastructure to help clients address business challenges. IBM’s company overview
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