Telecommunications - The Consumer Revolution |
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| Authors: | Lord Young |
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| Affiliation: | Lord Young is Executive Chairman of Cable and Wireless plc. He also serves on the Board of Solomon Inc and Solomon Brothers International Ltd. Lord Young was, until 1989, Secretary of State for Trade and Industry and a member of the United Kingdom Cabinet and of the Privy Council. Following the general election of 1979, Lord Young became industrial adviser to the then Secretary of State for Industry and from 1981 acted as his special adviser. He also acted as an adviser to the Secretary of State for Education and Science. In September 1984 Lord Young was appointed Minister without Portfolio and became a member of the Cabinet. He was given special responsibility for job creation and encouraging enterprise. He became Secretary of State for Employment in September 1985, remaining in the post of Secretary of State for Trade and Industry following the general election of June 1987. He was Deputy Chairman of the Conservative Party from July 1989 to May 1990. |
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| Abstract: | Lord Young of Graffham, Executive Chairman of Cable & Wireless plc, spoke at the third LSE Business Performance Lecture about the consumer revolution in telecommunications which has transformed the industry. Since liberalisation, the British telecommunications industry has lead its monopolised European counterparts. When Germany licensed one cellular phone operator in the mid-eighties, the British government went for competition and licensed two. Both companies seta target of 100,000 users by 1990. Germany achieved hers; Britain passed a million users. This revolution in the telecommunications industry is timely because information is the lifeblood of service industries and is also increasingly important in modern manufacturing. Imminent technological advances, like the personal communicator, the videophone, and multimedia will increasingly add to its importance. |
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