Search

As recently as five years ago, markets for mobile wireless services in Europe were performing on par with, or even better than, markets in the United States. Today, there is broad agreement that the EU has fallen behind in at least some dimensions, especially with respect to the deployment of next generation LTE networks. We assess the divergence in performance, analyze its causes, and suggest policy changes that would improve the performance of mobile wireless markets going forward. These include regulatory harmonization of spectrum management, achieving efficient levels of consolidation, and promoting investment and innovation through a focus on dynamic competition. Key words: spectrum management, performance, ecosystem, dynamic competition, wireless markets., There is broad agreement that the EU is lagging well behind the U.S. in deployment of next generation wireless infrastructures (see e.g. KROES, 2013a; GENACHOWSKI, 2012). (1) This paper evaluates [...]

Recognition of the growing importance of broadband to the public presents challenges for policy-makers in introducing efficient strategies, not only to serve the increasing demand for broadband among people in society but also to increase their economic contribution both in the short run and in the long run. Different measures and strategies have been implemented in many countries and regions in order to encourage broadband deployment. Among them, the inclusion of broadband in the scope of universal service has been discussed. In the European Union, the discussion on broadening the scope of the Universal Service Directive (USD) to include broadband has been raised since the first periodical review in 2005. At that time, the European Commission concluded that only a small, although rapidly growing, minority of European consumers currently make use of broadband services. Therefore, the conditions for including broadband services within the scope of universal service as set out in the USD were not fulfilled. Later, the European Commission launched the second periodical review of universal service in 2008 with the preliminary conclusion that broadband has not yet reached the majority of people, implying that the conditions of the USD for expanding the scope of universal service were not yet fulfilled. However, the public consultation on broadening the scope of the USD to include broadband has been opened since March 2010 and was last on May 7, 2010. In the meantime, the public workshop organized in the context of the public consultation on universal service principles in e-communications was held on March 30, 2010. The workshop provided wide-ranging views on the topic, including an assessment of the cost of broadband availability and also the rapid change of broadband penetration rate throughout Europe. Against this background, this paper provides an analytical survey of the current state and trends of universal service with focus on broadband access in the European Union. First it presents an overview of broadband deployment and regulation in Europe. Then, it analyzes the USD reviews by taking into account the previous and the recent review, in particular by comparing the discourse evolution of the public submissions from stakeholders in the two consultations. A framework to evaluate broadband universal service will be provided. In conclusion, the paper will identify selected issues regarding broadband universal service in Europe, especially the pros and cons of broadband universal service.blablabla. Key words: universal service obligation, broadband, legislations, public consultations., Moving toward an information society has been set as a political agenda for the European Union (EU) for more than a decade. To reach this goal, several political initiatives have [...]

The environmental issue has generally received much attention from the public for decades, especially as a result of heavy industry--electrical energy, oil and gas, mining, steel and metals. Recently, attention has been paid to Information and Communication Technology (ICT) and its effect on the knowledge and related industries. Broadband, both fixed and mobile, is not an exception. Even though it has been recognized as a factor that has contributed to social and economic development, a negative effect can also be seen in particular regarding the environment. This paper provides a review of how government policy, in particular by the EU and Japan, are moving towards the transition to sustainability by utilizing ICT, as well as an evaluation of the pros and cons of broadband development. There are many complex effects on sustainability due to ICT. Since ICT can have environmental effects both as enabling energy efficiency and causing rebound effects, the policies should respond to both direct and indirect effects. To facilitate policy analysis and recommendations, this paper categorizes ICT impacts by five orders of aggregation. These five orders of aggregation may contribute both positively and negatively to sustainability, and each level will need targeted policies. The five orders of aggregation suggest a comprehensive and long term view of policy development, encompassing even policies that seek to improve the quality of decision making in our societies, by utilizing ICTs. Key words: broadband, sustainable development, green ICT., * Broadband development and environment issue 'Humanity has the ability to make the development sustainable to ensure that it meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of [...]

Abstract: Besides 3G, a number of alternative wireless technologies (AWTs) have emerged. Such AWTs create new growth opportunities, but may also constitute a disruptive threat to existing networks and their [...]

Dear ITS Members, Part of ITS' mission is to '... provide a forum where academic, private sector and government communities can meet to identify pressing new problems and issues, share [...]

Dear ITS Members, Biennial Conferences are ITS' most important events .At our biennials, ITS members from around the world gather to discuss papers, present new findings and forge new contacts. [...]

Alain Bourdeau de Fontenay passed away on 23 July 2011. He will be remembered fondly by the academic and ICT community for his deep knowledge of the most important issues, [...]

Social media is widely recognized as a challenging new communication technology in both economic and social contexts. The present article explores how banks have exploited this technology in the range of consumer retail banking services offered by 100 leading global banks on the three major social networking sites (SNS): Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube. Viewing social network (SN) banking as a separate delivery channel and offering a working definition of SN banking, the article shows that banks have been more cautious than other businesses in using SNS. The available services are classified on nine main dimensions: marketing, financial education and advice, information support, customer support, sales representativeness, customer engagement, online recruitment, survey and polling, and other services. The scope of these SN banking services is for the most part non-cash-based. Conclusions, implications, and recommendations are discussed and future research priorities are identified.

Dear ITS Members, ITS is pleased to look back at two happy regional conferences, and to look forward to yet three more in 2009! Bangkok, 2-3 April, hosted by National [...]

Dear ITS Members, ITS is pleased to look back at another remarkable year, and also to look forward to 2009, with many new events. In Montreal, the 17th ITS Biennial [...]

Dear ITS Members Over the past two years, there has been a strong interest shown to renew memberships on-line, and between biennial conferences. This increase in on-line membership renewals shows [...]

Joseph W. GOODMAN Telecommunications Policy-Making in the European Union Edward Elgar, 2006, 299 pages This well-written book deals with the emergence and shaping of telecommunications policy in Europe, with a [...]

Jean-Marc CHADUC * Gerard Pogorel The Radio Spectrum Managing a Strategic Resource ISTE/Wiley, London, 2008 This book provides a comprehensive overview and unusual synthesis of spectrum management, written both from [...]

I remember fondly my first encounter with Japan. When I was about six years old, I visited my grandmother, who had a Japanese tea set that she cared for a […]

This paper reviews the literature on digital divide and e-readiness in different fields with an eye to identifying trends and gaps in prominent research areas. In this study, 411 articles, conference papers, master’s and doctoral dissertations, textbooks, and working papers on digital divide and e-readiness are classified and elaborated and their results are presented. Drawing upon this literature review and analysis of digital divide and e-readiness, several important research areas surrounding digital divide and e-readiness are discussed and examined from a critical standpoint. In the paper, a comprehensive list of references is presented and, to the best of the authors’ knowledge, this is the most complete study of digital divide and e-readiness, even in the field of IT, in terms of its references. This paper reviews the literature on the digital divide and e-readiness from three perspectives with the purpose of identifying trends and gaps in this field: definition, methodology and scale. This review reveals that most modelers do not take sound theoretical and policy concerns into consideration, rather they tend to provide an empirical summarized measure for digitalization. Also, they develop digital divide and e-readiness models by building static composite indexes from individual indicators and tend to apply dynamic models to a lesser degree. Finally, there is a lack of research in the micro level vis-à-vis macro level that the authors attempt to compensate for.

National regulatory authorities (NRAs) attempt to encourage participation in spectrum assignments by enhancing entrants’ likelihood of success. The question this study addresses is: can NRA policy tools really affect the probability an entrant wins a 3G spectrum licence? In particular, the econometric analysis allows consideration of whether licence concession or mode of assignment encourages entry. The study finds that auction assignment processes only slightly increase the probability of entry, whilst price and quantity concessions have no impact.

This paper addresses the intergenerational effects of mobile telephone service diffusion in Sweden. Using the Norton-Bass model and the Islam-Meade model, it plots annual mobile service penetration rate data from 1956 to 2010 to explain the pattern of mobile telephone service diffusion. The results show that only the Norton-Bass model could achieve convergence status in the programme iteration. The results also suggest that the diffusion process is affected more by external factors, such as word of mouth, than by the inherent innovativeness of users. Each type of technology is also found to have different market potential, with newer technology having greater market potential than older technology. The study also recognises that the intergenerational process of mobile telephone service diffusion is comparable to the evolutionary process of technology in the sense that it shows two main evolutionary features, i.e., the emergence of technology variation across generations and the selection process from earlier generations of technology to the new one.

This paper aims to measure the impact of broadband speed on economic growth in the OECD countries. All the variables used in this study were collected from OECD databases, except the speed data, which were gathered from Ookla, a company that provides broadband testing and web-based network diagnostic applications data on a daily basis. Quarterly balanced panel data for 33 OECD countries during the period 2008–2010 were examined. The study found that the estimated coefficient of broadband speed is statistically significant. The hypothetical result of this study shows that doubling the broadband speed will contribute 0.3% growth compared with the growth rate for the base year. The results convey that the impact of increasing broadband speed on GDP growth will largely depend on two aspects: 1) the size of the coefficient of the broadband speed ( b ); 2) the existing economic growth in each country. Finally, the paper provides suggestions for future research in this vein and further calibration of future models.

To move towards an information society is a political goal of governments around the world. To achieve this goal, high-capacity broadband networks are regarded as fundamental infrastructure. An increase in broadband growth in a country results in increased opportunities for its people to participate in the network society. The EU, in particular, has initiated policies and regulations for more than ten years so that benefits of the information society can be fully enjoyed. The success of the EU is mostly based on DSL technology, which is driven by telecommunications regulations. Nevertheless, new applications and the increasing number of users will require more and more network capacity. While the EU leads the world in broadband penetration, it may fall behind in terms of competitiveness in the global market. The digital agenda in Europe has therefore been initiated to increase competitiveness through new fibre-based infrastructure. The main focus of this paper is on the NGA Recommendation. The paper analyses NGA in the EU based on a conceptual model that addresses the interaction between the strategic and the sector agenda.

Encouraging broadband availability to all end-users is one of the priority policies of government around the world. In the EU, several policies have been initiated. Among them, the inclusion of broadband in the scope of universal service has been discussed. This paper provides an overview of the current state and trends of universal service with focus on broadband access in the European Union. In particular, a historical overview is given of the universal service legislation and various policies initiatives in the EU, emphasising that future broadband universal service has long-standing antecedents, going back to the 1980s. However, broadening the scope of universal service has many different contexts to be considered, and balancing between contexts must be done carefully.

Investment management and investment appraisals of new technologies in Swedish Telecom's network have been investigated in an exploratory manner. Investments in new telecom technologies are difficult to appraise because of, among other things, systems interdependence, technical change and competition. It is argued that investment appraisals need to be more closely integrated with strategy and that it is essential for management to carefully match investment management with different types of investments in order to alleviate measurement problems and to provide the right organizational incentives for investments in new technologies.

Reports the association of lifestyle and economic condition in Japan. Curiosity of the author on Japanese language composition; Description on the Japanese society; Implication of the lifestyle of Japanese to the economic development in the country.