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Evaluating a decade of mobile termination rate regulation

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Abstract

We re-consider the impact that regulation of call termination on mobile phones has had on mobile customers’ bills. Using a large panel covering 27 countries, we find that the “waterbed” phenomenon, initially observed until early 2006, has disappeared over the 10-year period, 2002-2011. We argue that this is due to the changing nature of the industry, whereby mobile-to-mobile traffic now plays a much bigger role compared to fixed-to-mobile calls in earlier periods. This implies that regulation does not have unintended consequences anymore. Over the same decade, there is no evidence that regulation caused a reduction in mobile operators’ profits and investments.

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  • Christos Genakos & Tommaso Valletti, 2014. "Evaluating a decade of mobile termination rate regulation," CEIS Research Paper 303, Tor Vergata University, CEIS, revised 10 Jan 2014.
    • Handle: RePEc:rtv:ceisrp:303
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    Cited by:

    1. Vogelsang, Ingo, 2019. "Has Europe missed the endgame of telecommunications policy?," Telecommunications Policy, Elsevier, vol. 43(1), pages 1-10.
    2. Parsons, Steve G. & Duffy-Deno, Kevin T., 2021. "Are telecommunications regulators correct in their beliefs that network size affects origination/termination?," Telecommunications Policy, Elsevier, vol. 45(2).
    3. Shane Greenstein & Martin Peitz & Tommaso Valletti, 2016. "Net Neutrality: A Fast Lane to Understanding the Trade-Offs," Journal of Economic Perspectives, American Economic Association, vol. 30(2), pages 127-150, Spring.
    4. Hawthorne, Ryan, 2018. "The effects of lower mobile termination rates in South Africa," Telecommunications Policy, Elsevier, vol. 42(5), pages 374-385.
    5. Peitz, Martin & Valletti, Tommaso, 2015. "Reassessing competition concerns in electronic communications markets," Telecommunications Policy, Elsevier, vol. 39(10), pages 896-912.
    6. Bouali, Safieddine, 2017. "Regulated termination rates and competition among Tunisian mobile network operators. Barriers, bias, and incentives," Telecommunications Policy, Elsevier, vol. 41(7), pages 573-586.
    7. Muñoz-Acevedo, Ángela & Grzybowski, Lukasz, 2023. "Impact of roaming regulation on revenues and prices of mobile operators in the EU," International Journal of Industrial Organization, Elsevier, vol. 89(C).
    8. Mothobi, Onkokame, 2022. "The impact of telecommunication regulatory policy on mobile retail price in Sub-Saharan African countries," Information Economics and Policy, Elsevier, vol. 58(C).
    9. Ryan Hawthorne & Lukasz Grzybowski, 2019. "Benefits of Regulation vs. Competition Where Inequality Is High: The Case of Mobile Telephony in South Africa," CESifo Working Paper Series 7703, CESifo.
    10. Vogelsang, Ingo, 2017. "Regulatory inertia versus ICT dynamics: The case of product innovations," Telecommunications Policy, Elsevier, vol. 41(10), pages 978-990.
    11. Hawthorne, Ryan & Grzybowski, Lukasz, 2021. "Distribution of the benefits of regulation vs. competition: The case of mobile telephony in South Africa," International Journal of Industrial Organization, Elsevier, vol. 74(C).
    12. 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).
    13. Amassaghrou, Soumaya & Gutiérrez-Hita, Carlos & Zhukova, Vita, 2022. "An assessment of the liberalization and the evolution of competition in the Moroccan mobile market," Telecommunications Policy, Elsevier, vol. 46(5).
    14. Hawthorne, Ryan, 2016. "Do call termination rate interventions affect developing countries (with smaller fixed line networks) differently? Testing for the ‘waterbed effect' for non-linear tariffs in South Africa," 27th European Regional ITS Conference, Cambridge (UK) 2016 148673, International Telecommunications Society (ITS).
    15. Tangerås, Thomas P. & Tåg, Joacim, 2016. "International network competition under national regulation," International Journal of Industrial Organization, Elsevier, vol. 47(C), pages 152-185.
    16. Anderson, Simon P. & Peitz, Martin, 2020. "Media see-saws: Winners and losers in platform markets," Journal of Economic Theory, Elsevier, vol. 186(C).

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    JEL classification:

    • L4 - Industrial Organization - - Antitrust Issues and Policies
    • L9 - Industrial Organization - - Industry Studies: Transportation and Utilities

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