Different sub-disciplines of the social sciences analyse the evolution and diffusion of technical innovations from an institutional perspective. Important contributions are provided by socio-economic studies of national systems of innovation, by politico-economic research on the varieties of...

The convergence of telecommunications and computer technology stimulated a global expansion of networks and services which was accompanied by a deregulation of this industry. In the liberalized worldmarket a great number of heterogeneous actors must coordinate the development and production of...

For more than a decade the Internet was confronted with ignorance and resistance in many European countries. National and European technology policies were unfavorable to "not invented here" technologies and committed to "open networks" of a different kind. The incumbent network operators in...