Infrastructure investment and optimal access regulation in the different stages of telecommunications market liberalization

In this paper, we compare the optimal access regulation under three different market configurations that approximate the different stages of telecommunications market liberalization. We show that in the first stage of market liberalization the regulator has to balance between static efficiency and investment and that the optimal access price may be above marginal cost. In the second stage, two different outcomes are possible. If entrants tend to underinvest, the regulator balances between static efficiency and investment. If entrants tend to overinvest, the regulator sets the access price as low as possible in order to prevent or limit infrastructure duplication. Interestingly, we find that in the third stage of market liberalization the regulator may decide to promote infrastructure duplication and to set the access price above the price in the first stage of market liberalization, even if telecommunications network operators tend to overinvest in infrastructure duplication.     

Telecommunications infrastructure competition in Greece: Potential scenarios for future debates

In the light of the forthcoming liberalization in the provision of public voice telephony services and infrastructure in the European Union (EU), particular concerns have been expressed with regard to the realization of these competition principles in the less favoured regions. This article discusses the case of Greece, the country which has traditionally lagged behind other member states in both network infrastructure and institutional reorganization of the sector. Evidence from documentary and interview-based research shows that, although little progress has been made in liberalization policy and practice, underlying trends expressed by domestic and foreign actors could lead to a situation where signs of infrastructure competition may appear.     

Competition and telecommunications infrastructure in Ireland: A regulatory view

Against the background of EU proposals for liberalization of telecommunications infrastructure, this paper considers the impact of liberalization on Ireland and other peripheral and small economies. Ireland is characterized as on the periphery, with a small open economy and rural nature, with a big, liberalized neighbour — the UK. This makes Telecom Eireann particularly vulnerable to competition, but there is no reason why effective and appropriate regulation should not allow a smooth transition to a competitive market.     

The impact of trade liberalization in telecommunications services: The case of APEC countries

This paper examines the impact of liberalizing the telecommunications services sector on investment and output in the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) countries by estimating a system of four structural equations that takes into account the causal relationship between national income and telecommunications infrastructure. The degree of openness to trade in telecommunications is represented by a carefully constructed index that reflects a country’s trade and investment policy in terms of market access, national treatment and regulatory principles. One interesting finding from the empirical analysis is that the effects of trade liberalization depend on the risk rating of a country. In countries with relatively high risk ratings liberalization reduces investment in telecommunications.     

Cereal marketing liberalization in Tanzania

There is considerable evidence that cereal market liberalization in Tanzania has been a success in spite of poor roads, shortage of capital and vehicles, and lack of market infrastructure and standardized measures. The legal status of the private sector is unclear, however, and public sector policies still favour a heavy official involvement in the marketing system. Farm-gate prices for maize fall off rapidly as one moves away from the primary marketing centres, but on-farm storage of maize poses farmers no insuperable difficulties. Successful implementation of liberalization calls for clarity and consistency in government policy, the reform of financial services, the sale of unused storage capacity to the private sector, the more active involvement of farmers in the liberalized system, the strengthening of extension services, and a policy for regulating interannual price variations.     

Conflicting national policies: The creation of the euro and the rebalancing of telecommunications prices

Government departments have diverse interests, and on certain occasions, the need to achieve a priority objective in one department may lead to the adoption of inefficient policies in other areas, with long-lasting consequences. In this paper, we analyze the rebalancing of the telecommunications tariffs that took place in the European Union before and after the liberalization of the market in 1998. We show that the objective of satisfying the Maastricht inflation condition to allow participation in the European Monetary Union from 1999 led some national governments to block the rebalancing of telecommunications tariffs. Specifically, we demonstrate that in the years immediately before the liberalization of the telecommunications market, those countries that faced greater difficulty achieving the inflation objectives of the Maastricht Treaty reduced, rather than increased, the prices of local telephone calls and line rental. Furthermore, these countries did not intensify efforts to rebalance their tariffs after the creation of the euro. Our paper also shows that in this period the countries that diverged most from the inflation condition invested less in their telecommunications infrastructure.     

The Evolution of Competition Policy in Indonesia

This paper assesses the evolution of the new Indonesian competition law passed in 1999, and the creation of the Competition Commission. The first half of the paper traces the debate and process of deregulation and liberalization that preceded the introduction of the law. Whilst deregulation did lead to increased competition and efficiency, distortions to competition in the goods sector still persisted due to ad hoc and non transparent measures taken due to government interventions and vested interests. The services and infrastructure sectors were only partially liberalized. The second half of the paper evaluates the debate on competition law and assesses its introduction and implementation. In the brief period of implementation to date, the tension between a pro-competition and an anti-bigness interpretation of the Law is evident. The paper concludes that ambiguities in the law should be eliminated, that the competition agency focuses on advocacy and introducing transparent procedures rather than hastening towards concluding investigations, and that competition issues faced by independent regulatory agencies in the services and infrastructure sectors should be introduced carefully.     

Network liberalization and developing countries: The case of Chile

The opening of Chile's telecommunications infrastructure to private and foreign investment has led to a rapid modernization of the network and to improvements in universal service. In 1994 all remaining regulatory entry barriers to the local, long-distance and international markets were removed for both service providers and network operators. Full digitization of switches and specific characteristics of the Chilean network structure have led to fierce price competition in the market. In spite of the small market size the strategic behaviour of the main market players is unlikely to succeed. As a result the market is likely to remain highly competitive. While the liberalization process has so far spurred the universal service goal, further improvements will mainly depend on whether entry takes place in the local market.     

Trade liberalization and food security in Nepal

Among South Asian countries, Nepal liberalized most extensively during the 1980s and 1990s on both domestic and external fronts. In South Asia, Nepal has the lowest per capita income, highest dependence of population on agriculture and second highest poverty rate. At the same time, Nepal has the lowest average tariffs in South Asia and has taken several steps to downsize its public food distribution system and remove a host of agricultural subsidies. The outcomes from these policy reforms in Nepal are mixed. Aggregate indicators of food sufficiency and security (per capita food availability, extent of malnourishment) show improvement in Nepal since liberalization. Relative to other South Asian countries, Nepal is doing better on some indicators, like extent of undernourished population, while on other indicators, like stunting of children, Nepal is actually doing the worst. More importantly, the gains from liberalization across regions in Nepal have been uneven. The reason for such an uneven outcome is lack of complementary policies from the government that would lead to spatial integration of markets (e.g. the creation of physical and marketing infrastructure). Liberalization has in effect reinforced the ex-ante hierarchy across regions in Nepal. The paper then reviews the role and reform of the Nepal Food Corporation (NFC) within this broader context.     

High on creativity: The impact of social liberalization policies on innovation

Research Summary: We use a large‐sample inductive approach to explore the impact of two social liberalization policies (legalization of same‐sex civil unions and medical marijuana) and one anti‐liberalization policy (passage of abortion restrictions) on innovation. First, we show that liberalization policies increase state‐level patenting, while the anti‐liberalization policy reduces patenting. Next, we examine three possible mechanisms that could explain the findings. The results suggest that liberalization policies can increase the collaboration diversity of inventors, and hence, the rate, novelty, and impact of their innovation output, through promoting more liberal views and more openness to diversity. We also find speculative evidence that social liberalization policies increase entrepreneurial entry through promoting more diverse social interactions. We do not find evidence for liberal policies attracting top inventors from other regions. Managerial Summary: How does the social context impact the rate and direction of innovation? This article examines this question by exploring the impact of two social liberalization policies (legalization of same‐sex civil unions and medical marijuana) and one anti‐liberalization policy (passage of abortion restrictions) on innovation in the United States. We first show that liberalization policies increase patenting, while the anti‐liberalization policy reduces patenting. Further analyses highlight the impact of these policies on individuals’ openness to diversity as a driving mechanism. We show that inventors collaborate with more diverse partners after the implementation of liberalization policies, producing more innovations and more novel and impactful ones. We discuss the implications for firm location decisions, the impact of corporate social responsibility on innovation, and sources of regional competitive advantage.     

The Paradox of Liberalization — Understanding Dualism and the Recovery of the German Political Economy

What do the recent trends in German economic development convey about the trajectory of change? Has liberalization prepared the German economy to deal with new challenges? What effects will liberalization have on the co‐ordinating capacities of economic institutions? This article argues that co‐ordination and liberalization are two sides of the same coin in the process of corporate restructuring in the face of economic shocks. Firms seek labour co‐operation in the face of tighter competitive pressures and exploit institutional advantages of co‐ordination. However, tighter co‐operation with core workers sharpened insider–outsider divisions and were built upon service sector cost cutting through liberalization. The combination of plant‐level restructuring and social policy change forms a trajectory of institutional adjustment of forming complementary economic segments which work under different rules. The process is driven by producer coalitions of export‐oriented firms and core workers’ representatives, rather than by firms per se.     

The political economy of the Korean telecommunications reform

South Korea proclaimed a gradual economic liberalization ever since the early 1980s. Regardless of her vow to do so, however, most of liberalization efforts turned out to be a sheer rhetoric. In sharp contrast, genuine market liberalization and regulatory reforms are being introduced in the telecommunication sector, which is unprecedented in the Korean economic history. Why and how could Korea pursue such a full scale market liberalization and regulatory reforms in the telecommunications sector? Though it is argued that a regulatory convergence in economic management is found in everywhere in the world, the particular speed, scope, and/or processes of a country’s telecommunication reform cannot be understood correctly without examining the structures and institutions of the Korean political economy and of the telecommunications industry. This paper examines the causes and consequences of the Korean telecommunication reform by analyzing the relevant institutional changes both in domestic and international, which largely affect the interaction among those involved in the process of market liberalization and regulatory reforms.     

Does product market competition foster corporate social responsibility? Evidence from trade liberalization

This study examines whether product market competition affects corporate social responsibility (CSR). To obtain exogenous variation in product market competition, I exploit a quasi‐natural experiment provided by large import tariff reductions that occurred between 1992 and 2005 in the U.S. manufacturing sector. Using a difference‐in‐differences methodology, I find that domestic companies respond to tariff reductions by increasing their engagement in CSR. This finding supports the view of “CSR as a competitive strategy” that allows companies to differentiate themselves from their foreign rivals. Overall, my results highlight that trade liberalization is an important factor that shapes CSR practices. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Fiber-broadband-internet and its regional impact—An empirical investigation

I analyze a quasi-natural experiment of fiber broadband rollout in a rural German county and investigate the impact on real estate values. I find that there are strong and significant effects of fiber broadband deployment, which indicate relevant personal benefits for customers. These findings add to the literature on the evaluation of broadband infrastructure investment.     

Liberalization and the growth of business‐led R&D: the case of India

Firms and organizations in India have responded to market reforms, liberalization and globalization by improving efficiency, importing technology and by increasing in‐house R&D. This paper highlights some of the evolutionary changes that have occurred since India undertook sweeping reforms in July 1991 to open its economy to foreign participation and competition. Although some authors, such as Forbes (1999), have looked at the impact of the liberalization on India's R&D and innovation, they missed a number of dimensions that have far‐reaching implications for the process of technological capability development in India. Using the concept of technological capability, this paper makes a contribution to the discourse on the changing R&D and innovation scenario in the face of on‐going liberalization in India. It concludes with three case studies, which illustrate some of the recent changes made by industrial organisations.     

An economic analysis of the impacts of trade liberalization on Asian dairy market

This paper develops an economic analysis of the impacts of further trade liberalization scenarios on Asian dairy markets, using a world dairy model incorporating both vertical and spatial characteristics of the world dairy sector. Japan and Korea’ producers will suffer much bigger losses from trade liberalization than other countries in the region; Japan and Korea’s producers get much more protection from trade distortions than from domestic subsidy. India is a potential competitive exporter if Asia is liberalized. China and India are potential competitive exporters under global free trade. South East Asia and other South Asian countries remain importers under free trade. Greater trade liberalization around the world increases exports for potential exporters and/or ease importing pressure for potential importers. The increasing order of competitiveness of Asian dairy economies sectors is found to be Japan, Korea, South East Asia, other South Asia, China and India. China and India consumers would lose from world trade liberalization, but the other countries’ consumer surplus will increase.     

欧盟第三阶段天然气市场自由化改革及其对俄欧天然气合作的影响

欧盟推动天然气市场自由化改革,既是为了鼓励竞争、限制垄断以提高供气效率和供气安全性,在欧盟内部建立统一、开放的天然气市场,也是为了联合欧盟各国一致对俄,在与俄罗斯的能源博弈中提高议价能力,因此欧盟天然气市场自由化改革对俄欧天然气合作具有巨大影响。1）俄罗斯根据长期合同向欧洲供气的传统机制将受到冲击;2）俄管道气面临来自LNG的激烈竞争,迫使俄方改变天然气价与油价挂钩的传统定价机制;3）共同能源政策的制定和实施将提高欧盟对外议价能力,使俄在对欧天然气谈判中的议价能力相对削弱。欧盟第三阶段天然气市场自由化改革使俄罗斯面临巨大压力,但同时却为中国发展对俄天然气合作提供了战略机遇,中国应抓住这一难得的机遇,争取在与俄天然气合作中取得实质性的突破。     

The Role of Ideas in Understanding Industrial Relations Policy Change in Liberal Market Economies

This paper analyzes the uneven processes underpinning industrial relations policy liberalization in New Zealand, Australia, the UK, and Ireland. Drawing upon 140 elite interviews and building upon ideational comparative political theories, the paper highlights the role of ideas in the policy change process. It identifies how particular ideas can be used to construct policy problems, how these ideas can gain legitimacy through battles with competing ideas, and how policy legacies can influence whether ideas take root. The findings from the comparative case analysis expose a critical difference between “positive legacies” and “negative legacies” to account for different liberalization trajectories.     

Reducing transatlantic barriers on U.S.-EU agri-food trade: What are the possible gains?

In recent years, the EU and the U.S. have engaged in discussions to lower trade and investment barriers and strengthen transatlantic integration. For food and agricultural trade, non-tariff measures (NTMs) such as sanitary and phytosanitary measures (SPS) stand out as significant barriers. This study combines sector-level econometric modeling with an agriculture-focused computable generable equilibrium (CGE) model to simulate various transatlantic liberalization scenarios on U.S.-EU agri-food trade. The simulations quantify the effect from tariff removal and addressing NTMs. The magnitude of the gains depend upon the level of tariff liberalization, the depth of integration, and possible consumer demand changes.     

中国在东亚地区的自由贸易区建设研究

目前,贸易自由化席卷全球,世界各国都在积极与贸易伙伴谈判缔结FTA／EPA。我国在自由贸易区建设方面起步较晚,而且伙伴国主要在东亚地区。我国在东亚地区的自由贸易区建设面临两难困境：加快自由贸易区建设会给国内部分产业带来冲击和影响;放慢自由贸易区建设叉会遭遇日本以及东盟自由贸易发展的竞争和挑战。我国的策略应该是积极应对竞争和挑战,提高相关产业的国际竞争力,制定明确的自由贸易区战略,争取东亚贸易自由化和东亚一体化的主导权。