Introduction
Telecommunications regulations and policies control the shifting roles of telecommunications in the economy and the general public. It creates a forum for debate and research between academics, regulators, professionals, industry managers, consultants and other policymakers. Its course is multidisciplinary and worldwide, encircling issues of both theory and practice in telecommunications policies and regulations. Its capacity covers issues of telecommunication reforms at state, regional and worldwide levels. It controls implications of convergence of knowledge, infrastructure development management, policy and regulation.
The telecommunications policies and regulations in the United States is controlled by decision and policy makers in the civic, State and federal government. The Judicial branches and Legislative Executive of government and the Regulatory Commissions in telecommunication like the Federal Communications Commission and The National Telecommunications and Information Administration. The policy and regulation framework determines the bundle available telecommunication service to the costumer, as well as the telecommunication policy framework which determines the bundle of service available to the consumer, as well as the telecommunication industry structure (Nelson, 1999).
Emerging Policies and Regulation Issues
The Telecommunications Act of nineteen ninety six was predicted to transform the United States telecommunications policy structure more than any regulation policy since the establishment of the Federal Communications Commission in nineteen thirty four. Fast technological advances in telecommunication and economic process transformations have brought a number of issues since the creation of this Act that were unpredicted by regulators and legislators.
The surfacing of the Internet and related technologies advances has forced the reconsideration of media policy. Which control firms and sectors that dominates and capitalized on the telecommunication revolution. Unlike, television or FM radio, digital communication renders doubtful the traditional distinctions among various media and telecommunication sectors. The internet policy battle telecommunication issues concerning the Internet and the information freeway.
The recent European regulation for electronic telecommunications has been relevant since two thousand and three and is currently under a revision that leads to new rules applicable by twenty ten. The regulatory framework clearly states the objectives of regulators on welfare of European citizens. Secondly, controls the economic regulators on market troubles that cannot be effectively and efficiently solved by competition law (Clifford, 2006).
The layered policy model in the United States proposes a regulatory telecommunication system that classifies technologies advances based on their regular layered characteristics as an alternative of regulating telecommunication technology advancement with a different set of rules. Layered policy advocates squabble that horizontal policies provides regulation clarity for current technologies and they will also be adaptable to future technologies. A layered policy provides an equal telecommunication framework for state to provide municipal broadband services to consumers in a flaxen and competitive manner beside private telecommunication service providers.
Forced-access regulation is any regulation policy put into place by the state government forcing private telecommunication service carriers to permit its business competitors to use their telecommunication networks for their individual business purposes. The Telecommunications Act of nineteen ninety six forced local telephone companies’ operators to share their network lines with business competitors at controlled rates.
Conclusion
The telecommunications industry in the United States has been going through radical changes, for instance technological and economic advancements, which needs to be addressed by , regulators, professionals, industry managers, consultants and other policymakers to re-evaluate the telecommunications policies and regulations framework that suit the changing technology and economy.
References
- Clifford, O. (2006) Telecommunications network in USA, Macmillan publishers.
- Nelson, l. (1999) Telecommunications Policies and Regulation, McGraw Hill publishers.