Regulation

• Private rights versus public needs

Why Regulate?• If competition cannot exist, or survive long,

and an unregulated market will not produce competitive results

• If competition does exist, but because of imperfections in the market, competition does not produce competitive results

• If competitive results are unsatisfactory because of other policy considerations

Role of regulation• Perform the balancing of interests that the

market provides in a competitive marketplace– Interests of buyers versus sellers– Interests of subscribers versus stockholders

Changed role of telecommunications regulation

• Before the 1970’s:– To protect from the abuses of monopoly power

• Since the 1970’s (especially since 1996):– To facilitate the development (and

maintenance) of competition

More on changed role of regulation

• Before the 1970’s:– Emphasis on regulating price, earnings and

service delivery by monopoly company

• Since the 1970’s (especially since 1996):– Emphasis on interconnection among all

companies (asymmetric regulation)

Theories of Regulation• Public Interest

• Interest Group/Coalition Building (Public Choice)

• Capture

• Life Cycle

• Equity-Stability

• Organizational

Purpose of regulation

• At least in theory: – To protect the public interest

Origins of public interest concept

• Just price doctrine of medieval times

• Trade guilds of the middle ages

• French royal charters

• Common callings

Bases for Regulation

• Basic laws of the land (Constitution)

• Case Law

• Legislation

Legal Bases for Regulation

• Federal– Article I, Section 8 of the Constitution

• Commerce clause

– Article VI of the Constitution• Constitution as supreme law of the land

• State– Tenth Amendment of the Constitution

• Police powers of the state

Limitations on Regulation

• Federal – Fifth Amendment

• Due process

• Takings clause

• State– Fourteenth Amendment

Case law

• “Property does become clothed with a public interest when used in a manner to make it of public consequence, and affect the community at large. When, therefore, one devotes his property to a use in which the public has an interest, he, in effect grants to the public an interest in that use, and must submit to be controlled by the public for the common good.” Munn v. Illinois (1877)

Cases

• Munn v. Illinois: monopoly

• German Alliance v. Lewis: necessity

• Nebbia v. New York: virtually any enterprise if legislators deem it necessary to protect the public

Public Utilities

• Usually regulated

• What are they?

• How are they created?

• Obligations?

• Rights?

Public utility categories

• Enterprises which supply, directly or indirectly, continuous or repeated services through more or less permanent physical connections between the plant of the supplier and the premises of the consumer– Traditionally electric, gas, water, telephone

• Public transportation agencies

Public utility characteristics

• Capital intensive

• Sell services rather than goods

• Have to engineer their systems to deal with peak demand

• Usually “natural monopolies”

• Demand and price inelastic

Demand characteristics of a public utility

• Inelasticity of demand—both price and income

Elasticity of Demand• Price elasticity of demand

– If when price goes up, demand goes down, then demand is elastic

– If when price goes up, demand stays the same, then demand is inelastic

• Income elasticity of demand– If when income goes down, expenditure level goes

down, demand is elastic– If when income goes down, expenditure level stays the

same or doesn’t decrease in proportion, demand is inelastic

Elasticity examples• Price demand = elastic

• Price demand = inelastic

• Income demand = elastic

• Income demand = inelastic

What do inelasticities mean?

• The service is a necessity.

Definitions of a “natural monopoly”

• Supply based

• Demand based

Supply based definition of a public utility

• Economies of scale/scope:– When a single firm can supply a good or

service to an entire market at a smaller cost than could two or more firms

• Economies of scale and/or scope over a relevant range of output

More supply based characteristics

• Significant fixed and non-liquid investment (often called sunk costs)

• Problems of unused capacity (engineered for peak demand)

Demand based characteristics of a public utility

• Diversity of demand—instantaneous and uninterrupted services at peak and off-peak times

Market structures

• Perfect competition– Products offered are homogeneous and perfectly

substitutable for one another

– Large number of buyers and sellers with none big enough to affect total supply or demand

– Buyers and sellers have complete information about market conditions

– There is complete freedom to enter or exit the market

– IT DOESN’T EXIST

Marginal revenue/Marginal cost

Regulation needed to control abuses of monopoly power

• Monopoly pricing– Output set at less than the most socially

efficient levels of production– Prices higher than the most socially efficient

level– Discriminatory pricing

• Service provision• Service quality

Example of Monopoly Pricing

• Assume that 12 people are willing to pay $6 for an item that costs $5 to produce at this quantity:– Revenue is $6 x 12 units = $72– Cost is $5 x 12 units = $60– Profit is $72 - $60 = $12

• Assume that 8 people are willing to pay $8 for the item, that costs $6 to produce at this quantity:– Revenue is $8 x 8 units = $64– Cost is $6 x 8 units = $48– Profit is $64 - $48 = $16

Common Carriage

• What is it?

• Examples?

Definition in the Comm Act of 1934

• Common Carrier for Hire– Applies to messages transmitted by wire or

radio– Controls transmission (carrier) – Provides nondiscriminatory service (common)– Provides services for hire (profit)– Does not apply to broadcasting

Obligations and Privileges

• Obligations– Charge reasonable and non-discriminatory rates– Provide adequate service– Accept all customers on the same terms without

discrimination

• Privileges– Limitations on liability

Franchise law

• The granting of a monopoly in return for the performance of specific duties.

• Some telephone companies in the US were granted franchises.

Telephone regulation

• Combination of common carriage and franchise law:– Behave as a common carrier– Receive a monopoly franchise– Perform specific duties, including operating as

a carrier of last resort

Regulation to encourage competition

• Asymmetrical regulation– Not a level playing field—on purpose

• Control activities of dominant firm– Pricing

• Avoid cost subsidization• Avoid predatory pricing

– Interactions with competitors• Require interconnection• Require provision of essential facilities