The U.S. has spent over $25 billion to subsidize computer access in schools since the 1996 Telecommunications Act on the rationale that broadband Internet usage improves learning. In 2013, President Barack Obama directed that, based on the successful experience of a school district in North...

Network neutrality is a policy proposal that would regulate how network providers manage and price the use of their networks. Congress has introduced several bills on network neutrality. Proposed legislation generally would mandate that Internet service providers exercise no control over the...

A recent proposal for net neutrality regulation in the wireless industry suggests carriers should open their networks in particular ways. The proposal advocates creating standards that will make it easier for developers to write applications and for hardware firms to create devices that will...

Connectivity is a driver of economic growth, particularly in times of remote learning, remote work, and economic recovery. Billions of dollars of federal funds are being distributed to state governments and federal programs to subsidize broadband projects. The Broadband Policy Guidebook, 2022...

Introducing private sector participation (PSP) into the water and sewerage sectors is difficult and controversial. Empirical studies on its effects are scant and generally inconclusive. Case studies tend to find improvements following privatisation, but they suffer from selection bias and it is...

The Internet has radically transformed the way we live our lives. The net changes in consumer surplus and economic activity, however, are difficult to measure because some online activities, such as obtaining news, are new ways of doing old activities while new activities, like social media,...

In 1997 the U.S. Federal Communications Commission ordered sharp reductions in international settlement rates (bilaterally negotiated rates for telecom traffic between pairs of countries) for telecom traffic between the United States and the rest of the world. Even the very poorest countries,...

Introducing private sector participation (PSP) into the water and sewerage sectors in developing countries is difficult and controversial. Empirical studies on its effects are scant and generally inconclusive. Case studies tend to find improvements in the sector following privatization, but they...