Telecommunication markets are characterized by a dynamic development of technology and market structures. The specific features of network-based markets, convergence of previously separate spheres and the complex task of market regulation put traditional theoretical approaches as well as current regulatory policies to the test. This book sheds light on some of the challenges ahead. It covers a vast range of subjects from the intricacies of market regulation to new markets for mobile and internet-related services. The diffusion of broadband technology and the emergence of new business strategies that respond to the technological and regulatory challenges are treated in the book's 24 chapters.

Contenu
Theoretical Perspectives.- General Access Payment Mechanisms.- Competition and Cooperation in Internet Backbone Services.- A Behavioral Economic Interpretation of the Preference for Flat Rates: The Case of Post-paid Mobile Phone Services.- Regulation of International Roaming Charges The Way to Cost-Based Prices?.- Internet Issues.- Substitution Between DSL, Cable, and Mobile Broadband Internet Services.- Search Engines for Audio-Visual Content: Copyright Law and Its Policy Relevance.- Search Engines, the New Bottleneck for Content Access.- E-Commerce Use in Spa.- Broadband Issues.- The Diffusion of Broadband-Based Applications Among Italian Small and Medium Enterprises.- Drivers and Inhibitors of Countries' Broadband Performance A European Snapshot.- The Telecom Policy for Broadband Diffusion: A Case Study in Japan.- Mobile Drivers.- IV Mobile Drivers Mobile Termination Carrier Selection.- Countervailing Buyer Power and Mobile Termination.- National Roaming Pricing in Mobile Networks.- Can Competition Be Introduced Via the Issue of New Mobile Telephony Licences: The Experience of 3G Licensing in Europe.- Does Regulation Impact the Entry in a Mature Regulated Industry? An Econometric Analysis of MVNOs.- Business Strategy.- Exploring Technology Design Issues for Mobile Web Services.- Business Models for Wireless City Networks in the EU and the US: Public Inputs and Public Leverage.- Managing Communications Firms in the New Unpredictable Environments: Watch the Movies.- Shareholder Wealth Effects of Mergers and Acquisitions in the Telecommunications Industry.- Emerging Markets.- Next Generation Networks: The Demand Side Issues.- Technical, Business and Policy Challenges of Mobile Television.- A Cross-Country Assessment of the Digital Divide.- Russian Informationand Communication Technology in a Global Context.- New Perspectives on the Regulatory Framework.- The Regulatory Framework for European Telecommunications Markets Between Subsidiarity and Centralization.- Surveying Regulatory Regimes for EC Communications Law.- Innovation and Regulation in the Digital Age: A Call for New Perspectives.