TELECOMMUNICATIONS Pohcy COMMUNITIES and POLICVOPTIONS for RURALAREAS
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TELECOMMUNICATIONS PoHCY COMMUNITIES AND POLICVOPTIONS FOR RURALAREAS A THESIS SUB~DTO rn Scrroo~OF GRADUATE STUDIES m PARTIAL OFTHE REQ~EMENTSFOR THE DEGREEOF National idrary Bibliothèque nationale 14 ofcalada du Canada Acquisitions and Acquisitions et Bibiiographic SeMces seivicet bibliographiques The author has granted a non- L'auteur a accordé melicence non exciusive licence dowing the exclusive pmettant à la National Lîbrary of Canada to BibJiotheque nationale du Canada de reproduce, loan, distriiute or sen reproduire, prêter, distribuer ou copies of this thesis in microform, vendre des copies de cette thèse sous paper or electronic formats. la forme de microfïche/£üm, de reproduction sur papier ou sur format électronique. The author retains ownership of the L'auteur conserve la propriété du copyright in this thesis. Neither the droit d'auteur qui protège cette thèse. thesis nor substantal extracts fiom it Ni la thése ni des extraits substantiels may be printed or otherwise de celle-ci ne doivent être imprimés reproduced without the author's ou autrement reproduits sans son permission. autorisation. In the last two decades, largely Wed by advances in cornputer technology, there have been rapid and signincant changes in telecommunications technologies and networks. Reasonably priced access to telecommunicatioIIS/cinfomation networks is becoming a necessary component to community economic viability. Given the speed of change, and the increase in importance and pervasiveness of telecommunications uinastnicture and seNices, policy and the policy community in the domain are also in a phase of capid growth and development. This thesis documents changes in the telecommunicatioas policy community in Canada and in the province of Newfoundland and Labrador duriug the 1st 15 years. It reviews a number of telecommunications policy options used in other countries with substantial rural regions. Finally, using Newfoundland and Labrador as a case study, it suggests policy options that might be employed to enhance opportunities for rural areas to have great access to more sophisticated networks, and thus be able to participate more fuUy in the economic benefits afforded by such access. Fust and foremost 1 wodd Wre to thank Susan McCorquodale for her guidance and patience during the research for and preparation of the thesis as weli as for the fascinathg lunch-hour dialogues on the cornparisons between fishaies and telecommunications poiicy domains. My thanks to the facdty, staff, and other graduate students of the Department of Political Science for theïr generous efforts to include a part-time graduate student, with ail the constraints which that implies, in the departmental commulzity. And last but ceriainly not least 1 would iike to thank Jacquie Hansford for tolerating numerous telephone caiis at unusual hours about the mysteries of the her points of word processing programmes and for her assistance in the final formatting of this study. CHAPTER 1: RESEARCH QUESTIONS AND INTRODUCTION ............. 1 1.1 INTRODUCITON......................................... 1 1.2 RESMCH QUESTIONS................................ .. .. 2 1.2.1 PmA .......................................... 2 1.2.2 PartB .......................................... 2 1-3 CONVER~CE........................................ 2 1.4 SCOPE ............................................... 3 1.5 SO~R~~ESAM~APPROAC~.................................. 4 1.6 SIGMFTCANCE .......................................... 5 1.6.1 Gened PolicyDomain ............................... 5 1.6.2 Policy Communities ................................. 6 1.6.3 Social and Development Issues .......................... 7 1-7 POSSIBLEALTERNATE POLICY OPTIONS ....................... 10 ~ODUC~ION........................................ 12 STATECENTREDT~EORY................................. 12 ELITE ~ORYAND ELITE ACCOMMODATION.................. 15 NEO-~~ARXISM........................................ 19 RATIONALCHOICE TKEORY ............................... 20 2.5.1 Public Choice Theory .............................. 22 POLITICALINSTITUTIONS ................................. 24 PLURALISM AND INTERESTGROUPS THEORY .................. 27 POLICY COMMUNITIESAND POLICYNETWORKS ................. 30 CHAPTER 3: DATA INSTRUMENTS AND STUDY FINDINGS ............. 37 3.1 STUDYPERLOD AND PRIMARY DATASOURCES ................. 37 3.1.1 PeriodofStudy ................................... 37 3.1.2 Data Sources - National Policy Community ................ 38 3.1.3 Data Source - Newfoundland Pulicy Cummunity ............ 39 3.1.4 Data Sources .Aitemate Policy Options .................. 41 3.1.5 Daia Sources .Impact of Policy in Rural Newfoundland ....... 41 3.2 HISTORYOF TEE TELECOMMUNICATION~/CGRRIAGE~NDUSTRY ...... 42 3.3 NEWFOUNDLANDTELECOMMUNICATIONS HISTORY ............... 45 3-4 LAWSAND REGWLATIONS................................. 47 3.4.1 TheCRTC ...................................... 50 3.5 CEANGESIN COMPOSITIONOF NATIONALPOLICY COMMUNITY ..... 51 3.5. f National .......................................... 51 3.5.1.1 OtherPIavers ............................... 53 3.5.2 NewfoundIund (Tables 6 and 6A) ......................... 55 3.6 ~-CROUPC~ANCES~~POLICYCO~............. 58 3.6.1 Changes in hdust?y Ownemhip and Power Changes ......... 59 3.6.2 Changer in Regulatory Zittuence ........................ 62 3.6.3 Changes in Departmental Responsibility .................. 62 3.7 FINDINGS FROM ~MEWS.............................. 64 3 .7.1 Description of Rural Cummunities ....................... 67 3.7.2 Themes ......................................... 68 3.7.2.1 Cornpetition ................................. 68 3.7.2.2 Access . Service Level . Cost and Cross Subsidv ......... 71 3.7.2.3 im~actof Change .fiom POB to CRTCnm~ortance of Policy DomainPoiicv Cornmunity ........... 76 3.7.2.4 Cooperation ................................ 78 3.7.2.5 Other Comments of. intemrVfewees................... 79 3.8 SUMMA~~Y........................................... 80 CRAPTER 4: ALTERNATE POLICY OPTIONS ........................ 82 4.1 ~NTRODUCITON ........................................ 82 4.1.1 Economic and Social impacts of Telecommunications Poiicy ..... 82 4.2 ALTERNATEPOLICY OPTIONS.............................. 85 4.2.1 General ......................................... 85 4.2.2 Options for Consideration ............................ 89 4.2.2.1 Amemted Demand / Rural Area N~orh:Redefining thecustomer .............................. 89 4.2.2.2 incentive Remr1ation:Chanae in Reaulatorv A~~roach.... 92 4.2.2.3 Teiework - Proactive Complementarv Policv .......... 94 4.2.2.3. 1 Other Government initiatives .......... 96 4.3 S~Y............................................ 97 CHAPTER 5 : DISCUSSION GND CONCLUSIONS ...................... 98 5.1 POLICY~OMMUNITY.................................... 98 5.1.1 Structure of Networh (Atkimon and Coleman) .............. 98 5.1 -2 Subgovernment & A tîentive Public: Members & Growth(Pros) ... 100 5.1 -3 Dominant . Coniending. and Emerging Networks (Lindquist) ..... 101 5.1.4 Canadian and N.foundland Policy Communities: Genercrl Trends ......................................... 103 S .1 . 5 Possible Polis, Networks (Atkinson/Coleman, Pross, Lindquist) .................... 106 5.2 ALTERNATE POLICYOPTIONS .............................. 108 5.2.1 Telework ......................................... 109 5.2.2 Cooperation to Aggregaie Demand ....................... 1 1O 5.2.3 Changing the Regdatory Approach ....................... 1 15 5.3 CONCLUSIONS......................................... i 16 CHAPTER 1: RESEARCH QUESTIONS AND ïNTRODUCTION 1.1 INTRODU~ON Within the last two decades, the rapid changes in technology, particularly in the areas of telecommunications and cornputen, have radically altered the way we work, comrnUILicate, and conduct many other aspects of our MyLives. Where once industry was based on resource extraction and manufacturing, it is now widely accepted that the ind-al pla~ormhas changed to one that is grounded in the generation and utilisation of knowledge and information (Manley, 1994; Lesser & Hall, 1987; Hillman, 1993; Communications Canada, 1992a; Parker & Hudson, 1992). Over the past 40 years the tertiary/knowledge industries (e.g., services, consultuig, adrninstration) have grown faster than other sectors (Communications Canada, 1987). Reasonably pnced access to telecomrnunicatioos networks is as important to regional economic viability today as access to transportation systems was 50 years ûgo, as the former are now the means of delivering information based products to market. Policy malcers are challenged to fonnulate and implement policy to respond to this very dynamic environment, while maintainhg the balance of cultural and socioeconomic values that are part of the Canadian tradition. This thesis deais with three main componmts: a) recent changes in Canadian telecommunications policy, b) the growth in the policy community du~gthat same period, and c) altemate policy approaches that could be applied in this area It is organised into five chapters. This first praents the research questions, defines the scope, defines ternis, and introduces the major concepts that will be dealt with in more detail in later chapters. The second reviews the literature and briefly describes portions of major theories that might be useful in understandhg the analysis in this work. The third and fourth chapters present the data collected for the thesis: the third, the &ta on the changes both in the policy itself