This paper studies how the political influence of consumer groups and firms affects the behavior of state regulators and in turn the effectiveness of federal policies. We employ a unique granular data set for U.S. local telephone markets to examine empirically differences in state and intrastate...

By allowing carriers to route telephone calls over low-cost private lines, international simple resale (ISR) makes it possible for carriers to provide international telephone service without owning an international circuit. When approved, ISR reduces entry barriers and can increase competition....