The WTO Agreement and Telecommunications Policy Reform

Abstract

The WTO Agreement andHappily, the revolution going on in the telecommunications Telecommunications Policy industry is benign. ReformTechnological change and competition are making possible changes considered

Economics and Law of Trade in Services

“…Public subsidies also be directed to the consumer rather than the provider (Cowhey and Klimenko, 1999). Governments have experimented with various forms of vouchers from education to energy services.…”

Services, economic development and the next round of negotiations on services

“…For instance, in Chile, government subsidies equivalent to less than 0.5 per cent of total telecommunications revenue, allocated through competitive bidding, mobilized 20 times as much private investment to extend basic telephone services to rural areas (Wellenius, 1997). An alternative instrument is to fund the consumer rather than the provider (Cowhey and Klimenko, 1999). Vouchers, for example, can have a number of advantages: they can be targeted more directly at those who need the service and cannot aord it; they avoid the distortions that arise from arti®cially low pricing of services to ensure access; and do not discriminate in any way between providers.…”

Telecommunications reform in developing countries after the WTO agreement on basic telecommunications services

“…14 A geographically averaged rate, which in¯ates prices for urban areas, makes entry into urban areas quite pro®table. See Cowhey and Klimenko (1999) for suggestions on how to address universal service issues more eciently. 15 Mobile services had 1998 world revenues of $154 billion, as opposed to $429 billion in ®xed-line revenues.…”

“…The industrial countries considered enforceable market access rights, under the regulatory principles, to be a key deterrent to this perverse incentive. 24 Cowhey and Klimenko (1999) review basic economic principles.…”