IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/spr/inecre/v54y2019i1d10.1007_s41775-019-00044-7.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Testing the waterbed effect for India’s telecom industry

Author

Listed:
  • Mansi Kedia

    (Indian Council for Research on International Economic Relations
    Indian Institute for Foreign Trade)

Abstract

Among the many reforms that landed India’s mobile industry such tremendous success, was the shift in the interconnection pricing regime, from Receiving Party Pays to Calling Party Pays in 2003. Mobile tele-density leapfrogged and retail tariffs declined steadily. Interconnection eliminates the need for a customer to subscribe to multiple networks in order to be able to communicate with all other customers and is, therefore, indispensable for the functioning of a competitive telecommunications market. It falls under the category of conduct regulations which regulates firm behavior using price controls. This paper empirically tests the market outcomes driven by regulatory evolution in the India’s interconnection regime. More specifically, it establishes a relation between interconnection usage (termination) charges on retail prices of mobile services in India. This is academically referred to as the waterbed effect. Using a system of simultaneous equations with sub-national data for mobile operators in India for a period of 29 quarters from 2009 to 2016, the paper does not find that the market for mobile services in India is statistically interlinked with the market for wholesale termination, with the exception of postpaid connections which demonstrate a significant tide effect.

Suggested Citation

  • Mansi Kedia, 2019. "Testing the waterbed effect for India’s telecom industry," Indian Economic Review, Springer, vol. 54(1), pages 121-148, June.
    • Handle: RePEc:spr:inecre:v:54:y:2019:i:1:d:10.1007_s41775-019-00044-7
    DOI: 10.1007/s41775-019-00044-7
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://link.springer.com/10.1007/s41775-019-00044-7
    File Function: Abstract
    Download Restriction: Access to the full text of the articles in this series is restricted.
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1007/s41775-019-00044-7?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to search for a different version of it.

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Dewenter, Ralf & Kruse, Jörn, 2011. "Calling party pays or receiving party pays? The diffusion of mobile telephony with endogenous regulation," Information Economics and Policy, Elsevier, vol. 23(1), pages 107-117, March.
    2. Littlechild, S.C., 0. "Mobile termination charges: Calling Party Pays versus Receiving Party Pays," Telecommunications Policy, Elsevier, vol. 30(5-6), pages 242-277, June.
    3. Christos Genakos & Tommaso Valletti, 2011. "Testing The “Waterbed” Effect In Mobile Telephony," Journal of the European Economic Association, European Economic Association, vol. 9(6), pages 1114-1142, December.
    4. Dewenter Ralf & Haucap Justus, 2008. "Demand Elasticities for Mobile Telecommunications in Austria," Journal of Economics and Statistics (Jahrbuecher fuer Nationaloekonomie und Statistik), De Gruyter, vol. 228(1), pages 49-63, February.
    5. Daniel Birke & G. M. Peter Swann, 2007. "Network effects and the choice of mobile phone operator," Springer Books, in: Uwe Cantner & Franco Malerba (ed.), Innovation, Industrial Dynamics and Structural Transformation, pages 109-128, Springer.
    6. Karacuka, Mehmet & Haucap, Justus & Heimeshoff, Ulrich, 2011. "Competition in Turkish mobile telecommunications markets: Price elasticities and network substitution," Telecommunications Policy, Elsevier, vol. 35(2), pages 202-210, March.
    7. Hoernig, Steffen & Bourreau, Marc & Cambini, Carlo, 2015. "Fixed-mobile substitution and termination rates," Telecommunications Policy, Elsevier, vol. 39(1), pages 65-76.
    8. Hausman, Jerry, 1999. "Cellular Telephone, New Products, and the CPI," Journal of Business & Economic Statistics, American Statistical Association, vol. 17(2), pages 188-194, April.
    9. Shy,Oz, 2001. "The Economics of Network Industries," Cambridge Books, Cambridge University Press, number 9780521805001.
    10. Genakos, Christos & Valletti, Tommaso, 2011. "Seesaw in the air: Interconnection regulation and the structure of mobile tariffs," Information Economics and Policy, Elsevier, vol. 23(2), pages 159-170, June.
    11. Asher Tishler & Ron Ventura & John Watters, 2001. "Cellular telephones in the Israeli market: the demand, the choice of provider and potential revenues," Applied Economics, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 33(11), pages 1479-1492.
    12. Kjetil Andersson & Øystein Foros & Bjørn Hansen, 2016. "Empirical Evidence on the Relationship between Mobile Termination Rates and Firms' Profits," Scandinavian Journal of Economics, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 118(1), pages 129-149, January.
    13. Vogelsang Ingo, 2013. "The Endgame of Telecommunications Policy? A Survey," Review of Economics, De Gruyter, vol. 64(3), pages 193-270, December.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Vogelsang Ingo, 2013. "The Endgame of Telecommunications Policy? A Survey," Review of Economics, De Gruyter, vol. 64(3), pages 193-270, December.
    2. Hurkens, Sjaak & López, Ángel L., 2021. "Mobile termination rates and retail regimes in Europe and the US: A unified theory of CPP and RPP," Information Economics and Policy, Elsevier, vol. 56(C).
    3. Kongaut, Chatchai & Bohlin, Erik, 2012. "Impacts of mobile termination rates (MTRs) on retail prices: The implication for regulators," 23rd European Regional ITS Conference, Vienna 2012 60348, International Telecommunications Society (ITS).
    4. Cunningham, Brendan M. & Alexander, Peter J. & Candeub, Adam, 2010. "Network growth: Theory and evidence from the mobile telephone industry," Information Economics and Policy, Elsevier, vol. 22(1), pages 91-102, March.
    5. Haucap Justus & Heimeshoff Ulrich & Stühmeier Torben, 2011. "Wettbewerb im deutschen Mobilfunkmarkt," Zeitschrift für Wirtschaftspolitik, De Gruyter, vol. 60(2), pages 240-268, August.
    6. Karacuka, Mehmet & Çatık, A. Nazif & Haucap, Justus, 2013. "Consumer choice and local network effects in mobile telecommunications in Turkey," Telecommunications Policy, Elsevier, vol. 37(4), pages 334-344.
    7. Harbord, David & Pagnozzi, Marco, 2008. "On-Net/Off-Net Price Discrimination and 'Bill-and-Keep' vs. 'Cost-Based' Regulation of Mobile Termination Rates," MPRA Paper 14540, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    8. Genakos, Christos & Valletti, Tommaso, 2012. "Regulating prices in two-sided markets: The waterbed experience in mobile telephony," Telecommunications Policy, Elsevier, vol. 36(5), pages 360-368.
    9. Vogelsang, Ingo, 2010. "The relationship between mobile and fixed-line communications: A survey," Information Economics and Policy, Elsevier, vol. 22(1), pages 4-17, March.
    10. Harbord, David & Hoernig, Steffen, 2010. "Welfare Analysis of Regulating Mobile Termination Rates in the UK (with an Application to the Orange/T-Mobile Merger)," MPRA Paper 21515, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    11. Parcu, Pier Luigi & Silvestri, Virginia, 2013. "Electronic communications regulation in Europe: An overview of past and future problems," 24th European Regional ITS Conference, Florence 2013 88509, International Telecommunications Society (ITS).
    12. Clémence Christin, 2013. "Entry Deterrence Through Cooperative R&D Over-Investment," Recherches économiques de Louvain, De Boeck Université, vol. 79(2), pages 5-26.
    13. Moen, Espen R. & Riis, Christian & Fjeldstad, Øystein, 2010. "Competition with Local Network Externalities," CEPR Discussion Papers 7778, C.E.P.R. Discussion Papers.
    14. Wellmann, Nicolas, 2017. "OTT-Messaging and Mobile Telecommunication: A Joint Market? An Empirical Approach," 28th European Regional ITS Conference, Passau 2017 169503, International Telecommunications Society (ITS).
    15. Dejan Trifunović & Đorđe Mitrović, 2016. "Price Discrimination, Entry, And Switching Costs In Network Competition," Economic Annals, Faculty of Economics and Business, University of Belgrade, vol. 61(209), pages 129-160, April - J.
    16. Hoernig, Steffen, 2016. "Going beyond duopoly: Connectivity breakdowns under receiving party pays," Information Economics and Policy, Elsevier, vol. 36(C), pages 1-9.
    17. Hurkens, Sjaak & López, Ángel L., 2012. "The welfare effects of mobile termination rate regulation in asymmetric oligopolies: The case of Spain," Telecommunications Policy, Elsevier, vol. 36(5), pages 369-381.
    18. Wellmann, Nicolas, 2019. "Hello . . . Are You Still There? An Empirical Analysis How Market Structure Affects Quality of Mobile Networks," VfS Annual Conference 2019 (Leipzig): 30 Years after the Fall of the Berlin Wall - Democracy and Market Economy 203579, Verein für Socialpolitik / German Economic Association.
    19. Gu, Yiquan & Wenzel, Tobias, 2012. "Transparency, entry, and productivity," Economics Letters, Elsevier, vol. 115(1), pages 7-10.
    20. Steffen Hoernig & Roman Inderst & Tommaso Valletti, 2014. "Calling circles: network competition with nonuniform calling patterns," RAND Journal of Economics, RAND Corporation, vol. 45(1), pages 155-175, March.

    More about this item

    Keywords

    Mobile services; Interconnection; Water-bed effect; Regulation;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • L5 - Industrial Organization - - Regulation and Industrial Policy
    • L9 - Industrial Organization - - Industry Studies: Transportation and Utilities

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:spr:inecre:v:54:y:2019:i:1:d:10.1007_s41775-019-00044-7. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Sonal Shukla or Springer Nature Abstracting and Indexing (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.springer.com .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.