Regulation and Entry into Telecommunications Markets

Description

This book examines competition and regulation in the liberalized telecommunications markets. It fills the gap between the existing economic literature on competition and the real-life application of theory to policy. Paul de Bijl and Martin Peitz analyze a broad range of market constellations; in particular, the hot topic of access price regulation in asymmetric markets. The study is a valuable resource for academics, regulators and telecommunications professionals. It is accompanied by extensive simulation programs.

PAUL DE BIJL is currently a senior staff member at the Ministry of Finance, The Hague. MARTIN PEITZ is Heisenberg Fellow of the Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft, affiliated to the University of Frankfurt.

From the hardback review: 'Paul de Bijl and Martin Peitz substantially expand our understanding of corporate strategies and regulatory trade-offs in the telecommunications industry. Using a rigorous analytical framework, they guide us through the early liberalization stage toward competition in a mature market. This insightful and comprehensive book is essential reading for all academics, consultants and industry professionals concerned with telecommunications.' Jean Tirole, University of Toulouse From the hardback review: 'This book should become indispensable for regulators dealing with the trade-offs between improving consumer welfare and increasing competition in telecommunications markets. It should be equally important for scholars and students studying such markets and for policy and market analysts in the telecommunications sector. What distinguishes the book is the variety of market settings considered by the authors and the facilities provided to the readers ultimately to do their own calculations and draw their own conclusions for situations deemed relevant for the readers. De Bijl and Peitz's great strength is the clarity and rigor of their approach. Their assumptions are always carefully laid out and justified and their results are provided with all due caveats. Nevertheless a wealth of strong results and policy implications emerges.' Ingo Vogelsang, Boston University From the hardback review: 'In summary, this well-written and logically organized book provides many useful insights for policymakers, industry consultants, and academics alike. Although the formal analysis abstracts from many issues of substantial practical importance, the models analyzed in the book (and the additional simulations that readers can explore on their own) are unusually rich and capture many essential features of regulation and competition in network industries.' David Sappington, Journal of Economic Literature