International Telecommunication Union 1999 Convergence and regulation *15867* Printed in Switzerland Geneva, 1999 ISBN 92-61-08141-X Trends in Telecommunication Reform in Telecommunication Trends 30/09/99, 12:44 Also available from the ITU: Publications General Trends in Telecommunication Reform 1998: World Volume I ......................................................... 75 CHF General Trends in Telecommunication Reform 1998: Africa Volume II ....................................................... 65 CHF General Trends in Telecommunication Reform 1998: Americas Volume III .......................................... 55 CHF General Trends in Telecommunication Reform 1998: Arab States Volume IV ..................................... 45 CHF General Trends in Telecommunication Reform 1998: Asia Pacific Volume V ....................................... 60 CHF General Trends in Telecommunication Reform 1998: Europe Volume VI ................................................ 72 CHF Collection of five Regional reports (Volumes II-VI) .............................................................................................................. 240 CHF Collection of Regional and World reports (Volumes I-VI) ............................................................................................ 300 CHF Telecommunication Policies (CD-ROM), 1998 ........................................................................................................................ 100 CHF The African Green Paper: Telecommunication Policies for Africa 1996 .................................................. 60 CHF The Blue Book: Telecommunication Policies for the Americas, 1996 ............................................................. 50 CHF The Arab Book: Telecommunications Policies for the Arab Region, 1996 ................................................. 62 CHF Direction of Traffic, 1999 (3rd Edition).................................................................................................................................................. 350 CHF World Telecommunication Development Report, 1999 (6th Edition) Mobile Cellular Communications ................................................................................................................................................................ 100 CHF Databases World Telecommunication Indicators Database, 1999 (5th Edition) Single issue .................................................................................................................................................................................................................................... 200 CHF Yearly subscription (updates via Internet) ............................................................................................................................................ 750 CHF Direction of Traffic, 1999 (3rd Edition) Single issue .................................................................................................................................................................................................................................... 350 CHF Yearly subscription (updates via Internet) ............................................................................................................................................ 750 CHF Report + Database on CD-ROM .................................................................................................................................................................. 500 CHF Please contact the ITU Sales Department: Tel: +41 22 730 5111 Fax: +41 22 730 5194 E-Mail: [email protected] Website: http://www.itu.int Note: Discounts are available for all ITU Member States, Sector Members, and Least Developed Countries. TRENDS IN TELECOMMUNICATION REFORM 1999 CONVERGENCE AND REGULATION 1999 INTERNATIONAL TELECOMMUNICATION UNION © 1999 ITU International Telecommunication Union Place des Nations CH-1211 Geneva Switzerland First printing October 1999 All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without prior permission of the International Telecommunication Union. Denominations and classifications employed in this publication do not imply any opinion on the part of the International Telecommunication Union concerning the legal or other status of any territory or any endorsement or acceptance of any boundary. Where the designation country appears in this publication, it covers countries and territories. ISBN 92-61-08141-X FOREWORD We are pleased to present to you the second edition of the Whatever definition of convergence is chosen, few would International Telecommunication Unions Trends in Telecommunication doubt that it is being driven by both technological innovations and Reform. The theme of this years report is Convergence and consumer demand. Which one is the chicken and which the egg is Regulation. open to further debate. The first edition was published in 1998 to highlight the changes Convergence has been forecast since the early 1970s, but it has taking place in the telecommunications sector based primarily on the been a long time coming. Despite the widespread availability of responses to the ITU annual regulatory survey. This years report digital communications technologies, the momentum behind attempts to achieve the same set of aims. The difference this year is convergence only really came about with the advent of a dominant that the study has taken a detailed look at the impact of digital single digital data communications standard, namely TCP/IP, the convergence on the reform of the telecommunications sector, in Internet protocol, which brought multimedia capabilities together particular on national regulatory regimes. in a single protocol. This is only now really beginning to bite. To this end, the second edition has been arranged by key There are several dimensions to convergence. There is a regulatory topics rather than, as in last years edition, by region. In convergence of technologies, of services, of user perceptions, of each chapter, the topic is first addressed from a classical markets, of firms. Convergence is changing the way we communicate, telecommunications perspective, but with a specific focus on how conduct business, shop, learn and entertain. convergence fits into, or even complicates the picture. There is even a convergence of the way we regulate our industry. The closing years of the second millennium have been littered More and more of the world seems to be adopting open market with buzzwords associated with convergence: Information principles when it comes to the management of telecommunication Superhighway, Society and Age, Knowledge Worker and Economy, services. Less than a decade ago many voices could be heard arguing Multimedia, Digital Media and Interactive Media are just a few of that telecommunications was a natural monopoly. Now those voices them. But their meanings can be imprecise and open to vastly are very much the exception rather than the rule. Although most differing interpretations. There is no universally accepted definition would still agree that some level of regulation is required to guarantee of convergence itself, for example. fairness and the provision of at least basic telecommunications to less Perhaps this is because the process of convergence is only one commercially attractive groups. stage in a transitional process from the industrial to the information Liberalization and privatization are the current vogue. Perhaps age. Perhaps it is because it is not possible or perhaps not sensible it is the inevitable recognition that you cannot control the to apply too precise a definition to such a dynamic process. Or uncontrollable. Perhaps it is a new conviction that market forces perhaps it is simply that there are many forces vying for control of offer the best guarantees for efficient and economic service convergence none of which fit happily with any of the others provision. Or perhaps it is a feeling that time is running out and that definition. something dramatic has to be done if we are not going to fall Convergence can be defined as the provision of digital irretrievably behind our neighbours. communication services including text, data, image, and video Whatever the cause and whatever the definition, convergence at over existing infrastructure. Or as the development of new types of all levels is having an impact on the worlds of telecommunications, communication infrastructure capable of handling multimedia trans- broadcasting and computing. An impact perhaps greater than any missions. Or as the enhancement of existing telecommunication before. And an impact which will make itself felt in virtually all aspects services and technologies to provide new capabilities. of our lives in the new millennium. It can also be defined as the integration of technological, This document attempts to analyze that impact, in the hope market and legal/regulatory functions across previously separated that a better understanding of it will help us make the most of what technologies, markets or politically-defined industry structures. In must surely be a unique set of opportunities to significantly improve other words, digital convergence can be seen as the coming together life of people on this planet no matter where they live, or what they of previously technologically and commercially distinct markets do in their daily activities. such