COMPETITION, CONVERGENCE AND ASYMMETRY IN TELECOMMUNICATIONS REGULATION

This paper presents a summary of the theoretical debate on the advanta ges and disadvantages of asymmetric regulation, Recent positions on th is debate can be broadly divided into two categories: (1) supporters o f symmetric regulation; and (2) supporters of asymmetric regulation, T he authors then analyse recent regulatory reform in France, Germany, t he UK and US (with references to European Union policy) in terms of wh ether local policies on entry (licensing, cross-sector entry) and oper ation in a market (interconnection and access, unbundling and number p ortability) are more or less asymmetric, The analysis has brought to l ight a number of macrotrends that may be useful in determining policy guidelines. (C) 1997 Elsevier Science Ltd.