Which organization introduced the Wi-Fi trademark and certification program?

The Wi-Fi Alliance introduced the Wi-Fi trademark and certification program.

The organization was formed in 1999 as a nonprofit industry group to promote wireless local-area networking based on the IEEE 802.11 family of standards. Its certification program tests whether products from different manufacturers can work together.

IEEE develops and publishes the underlying 802.11 technical standards, but it does not own the Wi-Fi consumer brand. The Wi-Fi Alliance selected “Wi-Fi” as a friendlier name for products using compatible wireless networking technology. The name is not officially an abbreviation of “wireless fidelity,” despite that phrase sometimes appearing in older explanations.

Certified devices may display the Wi-Fi logo after meeting interoperability and security requirements. The alliance has also promoted generations such as Wi-Fi 4, Wi-Fi 5, and Wi-Fi 6, which correspond to particular 802.11 versions.