International Journal of Communications Law & Policy

ACCESS ISSUES UNDER EU REGULATION AND ANTI-TRUST LAW

THE CASE OF TELECOMMUNICATIONS AND INTERNET MARKETS
By Herbert Ungerer

Download the Paper in PDF Format: IJCLP Web-Doc 4-5-2000

Abstract

Access has become a key issue for regulation and antitrust in the Internet age. Quite contrary to much of the beliefs of Internet libertarians who count on low costs of entry and a robust competitive environment, many segments of the new Internet-based economy could develop, driven by the requirement in many instances to show world-wide presence to reach scale economies and global brand recognition, towards structures controlled by highly dominant enterprises. This paper reviews, very selectively, three issues which in the view of the author are fundamental to driving theory and practice with regard to access to telecommunications and the Internet, at least in the European Union: it reviews the current EU framework of access and interconnection to the basic layer of Internet access, the telecommunications network; it takes then a closer look at the recent changes of the system, even if the current reform process is still not concluded; and it discusses as a third issue access and control of the Internet and the concept of "top-level Internet connectivity" which has lately become central in this context.