I work with modern fibre optic submarine cables and enjoy researching the early telegraph cables (as much as I enjoy Z's... so those who know me understand the extent ).

I was recently perusing historical Nissan publications and came across this 1962 document:

 

The footer contains an interesting reference:  Cable Address "NISMO" Tokyo.

NISMO was the shortened address (International Identifier for the Telegraph Office) used by NISsan MOtor corporation to receive telegraphs.  The short form allowed for the sender to use fewer characters in the telegraph/teletype message to reduce costs. 

If you research the telegraph messaging techniques,  compressing words and acronyms were from well formed and standardized methods used long before the similar ad hoc usage in texting.

"Cable" comes from Submarine Telegraph Cable which was used to describe the messaging system used for ~100 years prior to 1962 for international telecommunications.

In 1962 International telephone calls were quite rare.

The first telephone cable across the Pacific was COMPAC in 1963 that could only carry 80 calls simultaneously.

So NISMO was first used in Telecoms before Motorsports.

Now you know the complete story

 

 

 

 

 

 

Edited March 18, 20177 yr by 240260280

If you have the opportunity to visit Ireland, check out this little museum in Waterville on the Ring of Kerry.  It has a great display of cable samples and other equipment from the original trans-Atlantic cable-laying efforts...

http://www.ireland.com/en-us/what-is-available/attractions-built-heritage/historic-houses-and-castles/destinations/republic-of-ireland/kerry/waterville/all/1-90308/

The Irish whiskey isn't bad, either.