IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/p/zbw/dicedp/334.html
   My bibliography  Save this paper

Fiber vs. vectoring: Limiting technology choices in broadband expansion

Author

Listed:
  • Fourberg, Niklas
  • Korff, Alex

Abstract

The upgrade of legacy infrastructure is a challenging undertaking in general. The underlying issues are especially prominent for telecommunications networks outside of urban areas. Using German micro-level data, we identify the structural determinants for fiber optics deployment and its extent. We also measure the role of technology competition from the existing infrastructures, VDSL-Vectoring and TV-Cable. In this setting and exploiting a natural experiment, a technologically restrictive policy as proposed by the European Commission is found to be ineffective in promoting fiber deployment. Policy interventions in the form of subsidies targeted at specific local infrastructure projects, however, raise the likelihood of fiber deployment by a substantial margin. A targeted, proactive policy approach is therefore needed to overcome structural and geographical disadvantages.

Suggested Citation

  • Fourberg, Niklas & Korff, Alex, 2020. "Fiber vs. vectoring: Limiting technology choices in broadband expansion," DICE Discussion Papers 334, Heinrich Heine University Düsseldorf, Düsseldorf Institute for Competition Economics (DICE).
    • Handle: RePEc:zbw:dicedp:334
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://www.econstor.eu/bitstream/10419/216847/1/1697741975.pdf
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Bourreau, Marc & Cambini, Carlo & Doğan, Pınar, 2012. "Access pricing, competition, and incentives to migrate from “old” to “new” technology," International Journal of Industrial Organization, Elsevier, vol. 30(6), pages 713-723.
    2. Bouckaert, Jan & van Dijk, Theon & Verboven, Frank, 2010. "Access regulation, competition, and broadband penetration: An international study," Telecommunications Policy, Elsevier, vol. 34(11), pages 661-671, December.
    3. Maya Bacache & Marc Bourreau & Germain Gaudin, 2014. "Dynamic Entry and Investment in New Infrastructures: Empirical Evidence from the Fixed Broadband Industry," Review of Industrial Organization, Springer;The Industrial Organization Society, vol. 44(2), pages 179-209, March.
    4. Bertschek Irene & Briglauer Wolfgang & Hüschelrath Kai & Kauf Benedikt & Niebel Thomas, 2015. "The Economic Impacts of Broadband Internet: A Survey," Review of Network Economics, De Gruyter, vol. 14(4), pages 201-227, December.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Zoz, Konrad & Zuloaga, Gonzalo & Kulenkampff, Gabriele & Plückebaum, Thomas & Ockenfels, Martin, 2022. "Costs of very high capacity networks and geographic heterogeneity – a statistical assessment for Germany," WIK Working Papers 4, WIK Wissenschaftliches Institut für Infrastruktur und Kommunikationsdienste GmbH, Bad Honnef.
    2. Muhammad Farooq & Jie Cheng & Noor Ullah Khan & Roselina Ahmad Saufi & Nagina Kanwal & Hanieh Alipour Bazkiaei, 2022. "Sustainable Waste Management Companies with Innovative Smart Solutions: A Systematic Review and Conceptual Model," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(20), pages 1-19, October.

    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. Fourberg, Niklas & Korff, Alex, 2020. "Fiber vs. vectoring: Limiting technology choices in broadband expansion," Telecommunications Policy, Elsevier, vol. 44(8).
    2. 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).
    3. Briglauer, Wolfgang & Gugler, Klaus & Haxhimusa, Adhurim, 2016. "Facility- and service-based competition and investment in fixed broadband networks: Lessons from a decade of access regulations in the European Union member states," Telecommunications Policy, Elsevier, vol. 40(8), pages 729-742.
    4. Vogelsang Ingo, 2013. "The Endgame of Telecommunications Policy? A Survey," Review of Economics, De Gruyter, vol. 64(3), pages 193-270, December.
    5. I. Vogelsang, 2015. "Will the U.S. and EU telecommunications policies converge? A survey," Economia e Politica Industriale: Journal of Industrial and Business Economics, Springer;Associazione Amici di Economia e Politica Industriale, vol. 42(2), pages 117-155, June.
    6. Joan Calzada & Begoña García-Mariñoso & Jordi Ribé & Rafael Rubio & David Suárez, 2018. "Fiber deployment in Spain," Journal of Regulatory Economics, Springer, vol. 53(3), pages 256-274, June.
    7. Bourreau, Marc & Grzybowski, Lukasz & Hasbi, Maude, 2019. "Unbundling the incumbent and deployment of high-speed internet: Evidence from France," International Journal of Industrial Organization, Elsevier, vol. 67(C).
    8. Briglauer, Wolfgang & Cambini, Carlo & Grajek, Michał, 2018. "Speeding up the internet: Regulation and investment in the European fiber optic infrastructure," International Journal of Industrial Organization, Elsevier, vol. 61(C), pages 613-652.
    9. Briglauer Wolfgang & Frübing Stefan & Vogelsang Ingo, 2014. "The Impact of Alternative Public Policies on the Deployment of New Communications Infrastructure – A Survey," Review of Network Economics, De Gruyter, vol. 13(3), pages 227-270, September.
    10. Briglauer, Wolfgang & Cambini, Carlo & Fetzer, Thomas & Hüschelrath, Kai, 2017. "The European Electronic Communications Code: A critical appraisal with a focus on incentivizing investment in next generation broadband networks," Telecommunications Policy, Elsevier, vol. 41(10), pages 948-961.
    11. Paolo Piselli & Carla Scaglioni, 2014. "Regulation Performance and Investment in Telecommunications in the European Union: a policy evaluation approach," Working Papers Department of Economics 2014/19, ISEG - Lisbon School of Economics and Management, Department of Economics, Universidade de Lisboa.
    12. Parcu, Pier Luigi & Silvestri, Virginia, 2014. "Electronic communications regulation in Europe: An overview of past and future problems," Utilities Policy, Elsevier, vol. 31(C), pages 246-255.
    13. Klein, Gordon J. & Wendel, Julia, 2014. "The impact of local loop and retail unbundling," 20th ITS Biennial Conference, Rio de Janeiro 2014: The Net and the Internet - Emerging Markets and Policies 106845, International Telecommunications Society (ITS).
    14. Cave, Martin, 2014. "The ladder of investment in Europe, in retrospect and prospect," Telecommunications Policy, Elsevier, vol. 38(8), pages 674-683.
    15. Keizo Mizuno & Ichiro Yoshino, 2015. "Overusing a bypass under cost-based access regulation: underinvestment with spillovers," Journal of Regulatory Economics, Springer, vol. 47(1), pages 29-57, February.
    16. Briglauer, Wolfgang & Gugler, Klaus, 2018. "Go for gigabit? First evidence on economic benefits of (ultra-)fast broadband technologies in Europe," ZEW Discussion Papers 18-020, ZEW - Leibniz Centre for European Economic Research.
    17. Tselekounis, Markos & Varoutas, Dimitris, 2013. "Investments in next generation access infrastructures under regulatory uncertainty," Telecommunications Policy, Elsevier, vol. 37(10), pages 879-892.
    18. Viktória KOCSIS & Paul de BIJL & Rob van der NOLL & Bert TIEBEN, 2015. "Reconsidering ex ante Regulation in the Dutch Electronic Communications Market," Communications & Strategies, IDATE, Com&Strat dept., vol. 1(98), pages 61-83, 2nd quart.
    19. Briglauer, Wolfgang, 2014. "The impact of regulation and competition on the migration from old to new communications infrastructure: Recent evidence from EU27 member states," ZEW Discussion Papers 14-085, ZEW - Leibniz Centre for European Economic Research.
    20. Briglauer, Wolfgang & Camarda, Enrico Maria & Vogelsang, Ingo, 2019. "Path dependencies versus efficiencies in regulation: Evidence from “old” and “new” broadband markets in the EU," Telecommunications Policy, Elsevier, vol. 43(8), pages 1-1.

    More about this item

    Keywords

    Fiber expansion; Technology competition; Technology regulation; Subsidies; Regional Infrastructure;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • D22 - Microeconomics - - Production and Organizations - - - Firm Behavior: Empirical Analysis
    • L52 - Industrial Organization - - Regulation and Industrial Policy - - - Industrial Policy; Sectoral Planning Methods
    • L86 - Industrial Organization - - Industry Studies: Services - - - Information and Internet Services; Computer Software
    • L96 - Industrial Organization - - Industry Studies: Transportation and Utilities - - - Telecommunications
    • O18 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Economic Development - - - Urban, Rural, Regional, and Transportation Analysis; Housing; Infrastructure

    NEP fields

    This paper has been announced in the following NEP Reports:

    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:zbw:dicedp:334. 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: ZBW - Leibniz Information Centre for Economics (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://edirc.repec.org/data/diduede.html .

    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.