In the last year, many advocates have called for the imposition of Carterfone regulation on the wireless industry. The FCC partially heeded this call when it imposed open platform regulations on one substantial block of spectrum (the Upper C block) that was recently part of the record-setting...

Abstract In markets with competing interconnected networks like mobile telecommunication markets investments affect the investor’s and also any competitors’ profits. In a theoretical model it is shown that cost-reducing investments reduce the investor’s termination rates and increase...

This paper develops a method to analyze the effects of competition policy in a network industry. Competition has mixed effects on incentives to invest: when a network is split between competitors, each captures only a fraction of potential network effects. However, a firm may invest in...

This paper evaluates whether competition hinders or spurs investment in a network industry. When a network is split between competitors, potential network effects are foregone. However, a firm may invest in components that are not shared, to steal customers from its competitors. I structurally...

We evaluate the welfare effects of the Roam-Like-At-Home regulation, which drastically re-duced the price of accessing the mobile internet for EU residents when traveling abroad in the European Economic Area. Estimates from individual-level usage data suggest that consumer surplus increased by...

European mobile communication markets are two-stage markets which are composed of the infrastructure (the network and its components) and the service markets (telephony, mobile internet, SMS). In contrast to most other network-based markets there are multiple fully integrated providers which...

In many industries, including telecommunications, a government decision on a standard is needed for the society to reap the benefits from the diffusion of new goods. Delays induced by regulatory bodies either in standard choice or its implementation can be extremely costly. I study governments'...

This paper develops a method to estimate and simulate the adoption of a network good. I estimate demand for mobile phones as a function of individuals’ social networks, coverage, and prices, using transaction data from nearly the entire network of Rwandan mobile phone subscribers at the time,...

This article provides an overview of Mobile Virtual Network Operators ("MVNOs") and their significance in the Nigerian telecommunications sector. With the release of the Licensing Framework for the Establishment of MVNOs in 2022, the Nigerian Communications Commission ("NCC") aims to improve...

For three decades the government of South Africa has sought to make telecommunications universally available and affordable. In its last days, the National Party government persuaded with the African National Congress (ANC) there should be licences for two competing international groups to build...