Pride of ownership
A pendulum of ownership and control over the telecommunication channels has swung over the last 150 years: from private enterprise to public control and back again. Why and how did that happen? What were the consequences?
The power of enterprise
In the 19th century, the inventor who discovered a new technology would also tend to become its owner and profit from its success. It was this direct ...
The force of public opinion
The second basic force operating on the telecommunications industry has always been public opinion. Whether state-owned or in private hands, operators...
Economic factors
The third force operating on a telecommunications network is always money. Economic factors include the growth of markets, the availability of finance...
Political pressures
Telecommunications soon became vital to national prosperity - and to national survival. Therefore the business of wires and airwaves was always going ...
The international dimension
Little in telecommunications can happen in complete isolation from the rest of the world. By definition, the way a country runs its telecommunications...
