Institutional variety in communications regulation. Classification scheme and empirical evidence from Austria

In recent decades, major regulatory reforms have changed the role of the state in the liberalised and convergent communications sectors of developed economies worldwide. The central characteristics of this transformed statehood in communications are, inter alia, a rising importance of independent national regulatory agencies (NRAs) and a growing reliance on alternative modes of regulation, i.e. self- and co-regulation. While the advent and activities of NRAs are often analysed in current literature, the institutional variety and regulatory contributions of private actors through self- and co-regulation are largely neglected. This article contributes to closing this research gap. A newly developed classification scheme of regulatory modes makes it possible to grasp the numerous and often intertwined contributions of both state and private actors. Furthermore, a case study of Austrian regulatory institutions active in the convergent communications sector demonstrates the potential of this new analytical tool and provides an in-depth analysis of various kinds of self- and co-regulation, which have substantially increased in communications regulation in Austria in the past decade.     

Universal service issues in converging communications environments: the case of the UK

Convergent trends in telecommunications and broadcasting technologies and markets have called forth a re-examination of universal service provision in the communications sector and present an opportunity to update and re-formulate its provision. In the UK, proposed changes announced in the 2000 UK Communications White Paper and subsequent 2003 Communications Act, whilst still emphasising the importance of guaranteeing universal access to stipulated key public services and content across communications, suggest a closer relationship between economic and content regulation will be developed. This paper argues that whilst it is important to consider issues of economic efficiency in the communications sector, this should neither obscure nor compromise the need to create progressive, socially responsible, universal service reflective of the requirements of 21st century users. Crucial to the delivery of such a system in the UK is an actively supportive government policy backdrop and the development of the new convergent regulator the Office of Communications as an effective regulatory force.     

Platforms,systems competition,and innovation: Reassessing the foundations of communications policy

Focusing on the effects of policy on investment and innovation this paper examines whether the conceptual foundations of sector regulation are aligned with the current technological and economic conditions of advanced communications. One conclusion is that the prevailing theories and practices are only adequate if the policy challenge can be reasonably approximated as a static or steady-state problem but they may have serious shortcomings if this is not possible. The article proceeds with a review and critical examination of two approaches that could augment or possibly replace the traditional approach under conditions of dynamic competition—the theory of platform markets and systems approaches. Both frameworks model aspects of competition in interconnected systems in more detail and offer novel insights to inform communications policy in an era of continuous change. Nonetheless, important theoretical and implementation gaps remain that will require additional efforts by researchers and practitioners.     

The political economy of satellite business

Satellite communications systems are the outcome of the fusion of big governments, high technology and big business, whose needs they meet. As a major growth sector they are becoming extremely important in economic terms. But satellite communications raise wider issues of the relationships between rich and poor countries and within rich countries. They will crucially influence the location of economic activity and the future prospects for countries in terms of access to information, decision making and income. The article discusses these questions and suggests how Europe might improve its position. It also argues that participation in public policy on satellite communications should be opened to a wider range of parties.     

Public policy for fibre-to-the-home

Integrated broadband networks are very costly, but many US industry analysts believe their introduction to the residential sector should be a national policy goal. Unfortunately current policy towards fibre-to-the-home is inherently unstable, and pits public and private needs against one another. A choice must be made between a public infrastructure approach, in which social costs and benefits are given greatest weight, and a private market paradigm, where communications networks develop according to market forces. This article examines some of the implications of each approach.     

European mediamatics policies: Coping with convergence and globalization

Growing convergence and globalization in the communications sector towards a changed societal communications system, which can be described as mediamatics¹ (media, telematics), poses far-reaching challenges to policy makers worldwide. This article provides an overview of convergence strategies in Europe, puts it in the context of related initiatives, and highlights the partially hidden power politics of convergence, which, alongside arguments on the functional level, forms a crucial factor in national and supranational developments.     

The rise of Facebook-based communication in the energy sector

In the case of public utilities, the development of stakeholder communication through Facebook is not focused in the existing body of literature. Yet, it is especially these developments that are essential for scholars and practitioners as they highlight the way stakeholder communication in the energy sector will change. The aim of this paper is to contribute to this lack of research by investigating developments in the ways German and Austrian public utilities use Facebook to communicate. Responding to the research objectives, two empirical studies were conducted. In 2014 as well as 2015 an online survey was sent to 850 German and 30 Austrian utilities. The results highlight the rising importance of Facebook in the energy sector. The share of public utilities using Facebook is constantly increasing. Additionally, during the twelve months investigated, the interactivity and frequency of Facebook-based communication rose. Utilities are progressively willing to invest more personnel and monetary resources to administer their accounts. As the numbers of fans increase, users seem to value the information provided by utilities on Facebook.     

Regulatory inertia versus ICT dynamics: The case of product innovations

This article conjectures that the legacy industry-specific regulation that has governed the telecommunications sector for a long time is in basic conflict with the dynamics and product innovations that characterize the modern information and communications technology (ICT) sector. Reasons for the failure of legacy regulation to promote product innovations are explained and proposals for alternatives, such as deregulation and regulatory reform are discussed. Both regulation and competition policy are more difficult for ICT than for other sectors. Therefore both, regulation and competition policy may need reforms in order to deal with new problems. The most drastic and most realistic alternative to legacy-type regulation remains deregulation and a move to competition policy. Symmetric regulation, smart regulation, quasi-Coasean approaches and subsidies all have some limited applicability to specific situations, but are all associated with complications that have to be resolved, while competition policy is a comprehensive alternative. Last-mile access and gatekeeper access are analyzed as two main areas of legacy regulation, which are in danger of being exported to other ICT areas. Such exports may negatively affect the dynamics of the ICT industry. Rather than being exported, legacy regulations should be reduced in order to enhance product innovations.     

Bundling communications policy for the new US administration

The USA does not have a coherent framework for communications policy. The author sets out what should be the prime concerns of a communications policy aimed at serving a pluralistic society in an ‘electronic age’. She describes the current situation, in which responsibilities for communications are divided over a wide range of government organisations. The Communications Act of 1934 is under review, and the author focuses on major aspects of the debate, and lists suitable areas for government involvement. She concludes by stressing the need for the new US administration to provide a coherent structure for communications policy making to encourage the essential free flow of information.     

Japanese telecommunications policy: New direction and old dilemmas

Recent shifts in telecommunicatiions policy have led to a dramatic restructuring of the Japanese telecommunications industry. A variety of new participants have entered the domestic communications market, and existing vendors have reoriented themselves. These shifts have not occured without trauma. Policy and jurisdictional debates and tension remain; traditional policies and structures conflict with new directions. Japan's experience in adapting new goals, policies and structures in the telecommunications sector warrants careful examination by public and private industry participants.     

Education's stake in communications policy

The interfaces between educational policy and communications policy are often of greater and more lasting significance than the scant attention they usually receive would seem to indicate. In the USA, some of the leading non-governmental associations in education have, for more than twenty five years, participated in a consortium whose mission is to bridge that gap and to assist the educational community to contribute to, and participate in, the process of formulating communications policy.     

The impact of introducing seven-day-trading on the Austrian electricity market

This paper analyses the impacts of the new daily green electricity production forecasting policy by the Austrian Green Electricity Settlement Agency (OEMAG) and the newly introduced seven-day electricity trading mechanism by the European Energy Exchange (EEX) on the Austrian electricity market. By treating these two market policy alterations as natural experiments and applying statistical and econometric methods to a unique data set, it is investigated whether thereby (i) a reduction of the green electricity production forecasting uncertainties and (ii) a generally more efficient electricity market with accompanying lower net costs is attained. Furthermore, we analyse whether (iii) seven-day-trading helps to mitigate the Friday-Monday effect that is often observed on stock and other exchanges markets. Finally, we investigate whether or not (iv) the underlying market design might tempt OEMAG to systematically overstate its forecasts on green power generation.     

Evaluation of import substitution strategy in Indian telecom sector: Empirical evidence of non-linear dynamics

The Indian telecom sector, post-liberalization, is characterized by the heavy dependence on the imports of telecom products, even though several policy initiatives have been taken by the government during the last three decades to reduce import dependence. This study investigates to what extent the policy measures adopted after 2012 have impacted the import, Foreign Direct Investment (FDI), and domestic manufacturing performance in the telecom sector. A series of non-linear time series techniques are employed to capture the complex dynamics among these variables. The outcomes of the study suggest that the import, FDI, and Index of Industrial Production (IIP) in the telecom sector share non-linear relationships that exhibit regime shifts, time-varying behavior, and asymmetry. The study highlights that the FDI drives the import and, in normal circumstances, FDI and imports have the potential to influence IIP in the telecom sector in the long-run. The findings indicate that the policy measures adopted by the government are justifiable as the import substitution strategies have the potential to get transmitted to the telecom sector in the future. Based on the empirical findings, the study proposes a set of policy measures, which should help the sector to grow intrinsically while lowering the import dependence.     

Is telecommunications regulation efficient? An international perspective

This article addresses the efficiency of regulation policy in the telecommunications sector. First, the concepts of static and dynamic efficiency are reviewed, with the main policies used into achieve these goals identified, while distinguishing effective competition from industrial policy. Indicators are proposed that enable assessment of components of sector efficiency. These indicators are used to empirically investigate the link between regulation policy and economic performance for OECD Member Countries. The investigation is based on national differences in regulation policy and efficiency indicators. The results support the notion that asymmetrical ex ante regulation alone is not necessarily efficient, and that an ex ante policy, integrating an industrial policy, could favor dynamic efficiency.     

How much energy will your NGN consume? A model for energy consumption in next generation access networks: The case of Spain

The contribution to global energy consumption of the information and communications technology (ICT) sector has increased considerably in the last decade, along with its growing relevance to the overall economy. This trend will continue due to the seemingly ever greater use of these technologies, with broadband data traffic generated by the usage of telecommunication networks as a primary component. In fact, in response to user demand, the telecommunications industry is initiating the deployment of next generation networks (NGNs). However, energy consumption is mostly absent from the debate on these deployments, in spite of the potential impact on both expenses and sustainability. In addition, consumers are unaware of the energy impact of their choices in ultra-broadband services. This paper focuses on forecasting energy consumption in the access part of NGNs by modelling the combined effect of the deployment of two different ultra-broadband technologies (FTTH-GPON and LTE), the evolution of traffic per user, and the energy consumption in each of the networks and user devices. Conclusions are presented on the levels of energy consumption, their cost and the impact of different network design parameters. The effect of technological developments, techno-economic and policy decisions on energy consumption is highlighted. On the consumer side, practical figures and comparisons across technologies are provided. Although the paper focuses on Spain, the analysis can be extended to similar countries.     

An institutional analysis of environmental management in the Korean mobile communications industry

Environmental sustainability in the mobile communications industry can affect corporations not only in the sector but also in other industries by providing solutions to cope with environmental issues. However, despite the significance of environmental sustainability in the industry, there has been a lack of academic attention. This study investigated the environmental issues in the mobile communications industry by adopting an integrated and holistic approach to corporate sustainable management. In addition, the environmental management of mobile network operators was analyzed using the framework of institutional theory. To investigate the environmental management of mobile network operators, we carried out a case study on three Korean mobile network operators including SK Telecom, KT, and LG Uplus. The results demonstrated that economic and environmental issues were mostly found in the mobile communications industry, and the mobile network operators have actively coped with these issues. Their environmental management was relatively active, and regulatory, mimetic and normative mechanisms were working simultaneously. This study provides some meaningful implications for practitioners and policymakers.     

Race,ethnicity, and telecommunications policy issues of access and representation: Centering communities of color and their concerns

This paper examines how and why activist groups representing marginalized communities of color are increasingly engaging in communications technology policy issues, particularly in relation to issues of digital access and representation. It explores three distinct but related case studies to disentangle the issues and concerns of a range of communities of color, and the challenges and opportunities for their advocates in navigating the highly technical communications technology policy arena: the first case study, which centers on the NAACP's original opposition to net neutrality, reveals the primacy of issues surrounding the “digital divide” to populations of color, and the difficulties of engaging in technical conversations surrounding Internet governance when issues of access persist. Meanwhile, the second case reviews the campaign by Free Press to promote set-top box liberalization as an issue of representation and diversity to both policymakers and citizens. The final case, which examines the work of the Tribal International Carrier to build an alternative internet service network for Native populations, highlights the precarity which organizations must strategically navigate in order to mitigate the influence of both the state and large corporations over Internet policy issues in order to both serve and represent their constituents. In all, this paper presents and extends upon a novel approach to communications policy research, foregrounding the need to integrate critical race frameworks and, relatedly, to center the breadth, depth, and lived experiences of communities of color, which can therein facilitate more inclusive digital media and communication environments and policy structures.