Books

A wave of change, possibly permanent ongoing change, has hit the world's national information and communication systems - destroying their isolation. The issues and stakes involved are global. What have different nations done to cope? What have been the results? As the title of this book suggests, the development, implementation and outcomes of national information policies presents a maze of issues, options and unexpected results for all stakeholders.

The Information Policy Maze examines major issues that have come up as telecommunications markets are liberalised and nations try to develop their information industries. It describes, examines and compares the approaches of different nations, including different information strategies, competition policies and associated regulations, the role and scope of industry self-regulation, interconnection and access regimes, and approaches to industry development.

The countries examined are Australia, the United States, Canada, those in the European Union generally - specifically France, Germany and the United Kingdom - Japan, South Korea, Malaysia and New Zealand. Comparisons of national experiences identify areas of continuing controversy and conflict among stakeholders. They also highlight some common lessons for nations reviewing their policies and provide a mirror for countries to examine results of existing approaches.