Regulatory Authorities
Drivers of Market Development
Detecon has been developing international expertise and providing consultancy concerning the setting up and developing of regulatory bodies for over fifteen years. We have worked with governments in Africa, Asia & Asia-Pacific, Eastern Europe, Middle East, South America and Western Europe to implement a structure for sector reform in their countries. We also gained experience in the EU liberalization process and have drafted new telecommunications laws for a number of countries. Furthermore, Detecon has supported the running and the development of the regulatory functions. Based on our extensive experience gained since the early days of the telecommunication market liberalization, we have developed a comprehensive and unique service offering for regulatory authorities / governments covering all of today's regulatory challenges. On behalf of our clients, Detecon has developed regulatory models, drafted legal and regulatory documents, advised regulatory authorities on policy strategy, and realigned their organizational structure and processes to fit new requirements. Detecon in-house resources include:
- International experience and innovative solutions based on worldwide best practices
- In-depth understanding of the impact of regulatory trends and provisions
- Knowledge of issues confronting the regulators and the regulated companies
- Expertise in liberalization, competition and interconnection policies
Detecon provides its services in regulatory policy through a multi-disciplinary team approach that encompasses legal, economic, regulatory and technical expertise.
Overview Regulatory Authorities / Governments
Passing on Knowledge
Regulatory authorities in developing countries – but in industrialized countries as well – always step out into uncharted territory when they begin the deregulation of their telecommunications market; after all, deregulation generally only happens once. This makes the opportunity to benefit from international experience all the more valuable. Detecon has accompanied deregulation projects in more than 65 countries and can provide authorities with solid support in building up their know-how. It is important to train employees in their new duties and tasks quickly, specifically, and according to needs, and to secure the level of their qualifications permanently. The transfer of knowledge for the preparation of sector reforms, privatization statutes, license terms and conditions, and regulatory instruments is ensured at all times.
Viewing from Many Different Angles
The effects of deregulation programs must be examined from economic, technical, legal, and social perspectives: for example, the commercial prerequisites for market entries must be made as uniform as possible. The regulators must set up detailed technical criteria for the preliminary selection of the providers so that the required communications transmission methods and standards are clearly defined. From a legal viewpoint, for example, the unbundling of the customer connection lines (“last mile”) leads to comprehensive regulatory requirements. In the social sector, finally, the focus is on data protection as well as the possibility of special low rates for the socially disadvantaged.
Wanted: Decisions as Consensus
The deregulation of telecommunications markets must be based on clear political strategies to establish a certain structural order. The goal is a balance between the safeguarding of public interest and the development of open markets encouraging competition. The ICT strategy of a country can choose, for example, between competition among services or among infrastructures. While the rapidly increasing competition in services maximizes benefits for the consumer in the case of open network access, the competition oriented to infrastructure is better at promoting the investments of multiple providers in their network technologies. Moreover, the integration of rural areas requires clear guidelines: while it is true that the strong support given to wireless access manages to create a certain degree of competition here, the provision of telecommunications services with full-area coverage can still not be justified on the basis of economic arguments for certain parts of the country.
Rules of the Game for Players
The technical requirements for the efficient interconnection of networks will soon be in place in most countries. But before they can levy interconnection fees appropriate for the market, regulatory authorities must apply suitable cost models. At the same time, the prices at which mobile network operators grant other operators access to their infrastructures must be set. Another objective related to global competitiveness is the reduction of fees for international calls by means of call-by-call systems or controls on roaming prices. A final focus continues to be on the auctioning, the sale, or the assignment of licenses for mobile network standards in urban and rural regions.
Competition Through Private Investors
A reliable and low-cost telecommunications infrastructure creates good general economic conditions. But private commercial investments are what bring technological advance into play. That is why the commercialization of previously state-owned telephone providers, and regulatory authorities which are as independent as possible, are found at the beginning of most sector reforms. But opening up new market segments such as Internet or mobile services often proves to be simpler than introducing competition in the former business areas of the national telephone companies. Stable, liberalized investment laws provide the prerequisites for the involvement of foreign investors who, as a positive example, introduce more competition and further advances in privatization.
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