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This chapter provides an overview of the 2003 edition of the OECD Communications Outlook. It addresses the issue of policy and regulation, and examines the size and structure of the telecommunications market. It also provides insight into competition within the industry and the financial crisis that plagued it in 2001 and 2002. Finally, it touches upon some of the future challenges the industry will face.
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The telecommunications industry has played an important role in productivity growth and technological diffusion over the last decade. As the supporting infrastructure for electronic commerce and the growth and diffusion of the Internet, the industry has been a key factor in the new economy and changes in economic structures. This chapter examines trends in competition, regulatory safeguards, foreign ownership, interconnection, portability and carrier selection, local loop unbundling, Internet regulation and CATV. Household expenditure on communication is also discussed.
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OECD telecommunication service revenues reached USD 831 billion in 2001. This represented a 2% increase over the same figure for 2000. While the sector was still growing, there was a considerable slowdown in the rate of growth from previous years. This chapter provides information on the size of the telecommunications market. It specifically examines the wireless market, international communications, leased lines and research and development.
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Access to communication networks continues to expand across the OECD area. At the end of 2001 the total number of fixed channels and mobile subscribers was 1.2 billion. This represented an 8.7% increase from 2000. This chapter examines investment in network expansion and development, and specifically looks at the process of digitalisation and mobile access.
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At the end of 2001, there were around 213 million subscribers to fixed Internet connections in OECD countries. There is also an increasing number of mobile Internet users. Broadband access is becoming more common, with more than 50 million subscribers using broadband access networks by the end of 2002. Both the pattern of growth in overall subscriber numbers and rapid adoption of broadband access among the more advanced countries suggest that even among OECD countries there continues to be a digital divide, in terms of both ability to access and the quality of access available. This chapter examines the Internet infrastructure and provides information on subscribers to fixed Internet and broadband connections, Internet hosts, and statistics on Web sites, secure servers and domain names.
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Several major trends have typified telecommunication pricing structures in the past several years. This chapter examines these trends and provides information on dial-up Internet access pricing, DSL pricing, residential and business telecommunications baskets, residential and business rates, international rates, mobile communications, leased lines and local loop unbundling.
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The waiting time for a new telecommunication connection is negligible in most OECD countries. In many countries these data are no longer available as most users can receive a fixed telephone connection on request, within one or two days, where there are lines in place. This chapter examines the quality of service provided by the telecommunications industry. These services include connection time, availability of payphones, network maintenance, directory assistance, and answer seizure ratios.
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At the end of 2001, 3 million people were employed in telecommunication services i n OECD count ries. Growth in telecommunication employment peaked in 2000 and there has since been a decrease in total employment in the industry. Nevertheless, at the end of 2001 there were more people employed in telecommunications in the OECD area than at any time during the 1990s. This chapter examines employment in the telecommunications industry and labour productivity. Skill level within the industry is also discussed.
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OECD trade in communication equipment increased strongly through the 1990s, growing at more than twice the rate of overall merchandise trade. This chapter examines the importation and exportation of communications equipment, and the balance of trade of communications equipment. It also provides statistics on the composition of trade in communications equipment and the direction of this trade.
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