The Changing Nature of Telecommunications/Information Infrastructure -- Copyright -- Preface -- Contents -- Introduction and Overview -- PART 1-SETTING THE STAGE -- PART 2-REGULATION AND THE EMERGING TELECOMMUNICATIONS INFRASTRUCTURE -- PART 3-PUBLIC INVESTMENT IN INFRASTRUCTURE -- CROSS-CUTTING ISSUES -- Accommodating Rapid Technological Changes -- Standards and Standards Setting -- Democratization -- CONCLUSION -- REFERENCES -- NOTES -- Part 1 Setting the Stage -- Introduction to Part 1 -- The Evolution of the Telecommunications Infrastructure -- HOW THE TELECOMMUNICATIONS NETWORK BECAME DIGITAL -- THE ADVENT OF DIGITAL SWITCHING -- THE BOTTLENECK: LOCAL LOOP ACCESS -- THE PACKETIZING OF COMMUNICATIONS: ATM -- THE NEW INFRASTRUCTURE -- THE USER VIEW OF INTERNET ECONOMICS -- THE CONTRAST IN PHILOSOPHY BETWEEN THE INTERNET AND TELECOMMUNICATIONS -- MULTIMEDIA AND THE FUTURE OF THE INTERNET -- The Search for the Holy Paradigm: Regulating the Information Infrastructure in the 21st Century -- DEFINITION OF THE INFORMATION INFRASTRUCTURE -- REGULATION OF THE INFRASTRUCTURE -- Goals of Regulation -- Liberty -- Equity -- Community -- Efficiency -- Participatory Access -- REGULATORY PARADIGMS -- Stage 1: Scarcity -- Production -- Distribution Media -- Reception -- Summary of Stage 1 -- Stage 2: Abundance and Competition -- Production -- Distribution Media -- Reception -- Summary of Stage 2 -- THE NEW COMPLEXITY -- Technological Trends -- Economic Trends -- Sociological and Organizational Trends -- Political Trends -- Scientific Trends -- TOWARD A NEW REGULATORY PARADIGM FOR TELECOMMUNICATIONS REGULATION -- MAJOR ISSUES AHEAD -- Production -- Intellectual Property -- Content Controls -- Public Space and Information -- Distribution -- Infrastructure -- Universal Service -- Community -- Reception -- User Control -- Privacy -- Information Literacy.

CONCLUSION -- ACKNOWLEDGMENTS -- REFERENCES -- NOTES -- Current and Future Uses of Information Networks -- BACKGROUND -- THE IMPORTANCE OF INFORMATION NETWORKS -- A GOOD ECONOMIC BET -- LIKELY DEVELOPMENTS -- Customer Interfaces -- Bank Structure -- The Network as a Market -- The Network Structure -- The Changing Nature of Telecommunications and the Information Infrastructure for Health Care -- INTRODUCTION -- STIMULI TO CHANGE -- RECOGNIZING THE NEED FOR IMPROVED CLINICAL DATA SYSTEMS -- ATTRACTING PHYSICIANS TO INFORMATION MANAGEMENT TOOLS -- EXAMPLE USES OF THE NII FOR HEALTH AND HEALTH CARE -- CONCLUSION -- REFERENCES -- Can K-12 Education Drive on the Information Superhighway? -- NO MYSTERY AS TO THE EFFECTIVE APPLICATIONS OF NEW COMMUNICATIONS TECHNOLOGIES -- SNAGS, BARRIERS, AND ROADBLOCKS ON THE INFORMATION SUPERHIGHWAY -- The Telecommunications Industry and K-12 Education -- The Organization of Schooling -- K-12 Education and the Real Economy -- GETTING TO CRITICAL MASS: BUILDING THE 21ST-CENTURY INFRASTRUCTURE FOR SCHOOLING -- GOVERNMENT INVESTMENT AND REGULATION TOOLS TO GET K-12 TO CRITICAL MASS -- A Seat at the Table -- REFERENCES -- NOTE -- Future Roles of Libraries in Citizen Access to Information Resources through the National Information Infrastructure -- INTRODUCTION -- UNIVERSAL ACCESS IN THE NETWORKED INFORMATION CONTEXT -- LIBRARY ROLES IN UNIVERSAL ACCESS TO ELECTRONIC INFORMATION -- LIBRARIES, INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY, AND ELECTRONIC INFORMATION IN A NETWORKED ENVIRONMENT -- THREATS TO PUBLIC LIBRARIES IN THE NETWORKED ENVIRONMENT -- DIGITAL LIBRARIES AND LIBRARY SERVICES -- CONCLUSION: THE BROADER CONTEXT OF INFORMATION PUBLISHING ON THE NII -- DISCUSSION -- Part 2 Regulation and the Emerging Telecommunications Infrastructure -- Introduction to Part 2 -- REGULATION AND POLITICAL LEGITIMACY -- INSTRUMENTAL ANALYSIS OF REGULATION.

SOME GENERAL CAVEATS -- IMPLICATIONS FOR EVALUATING REGULATORY STRATEGIES -- VARYING VIEWS ON REGULATION -- REFERENCES -- NOTES -- Government Regulation and Infrastructure Development -- WHAT IS INFRASTRUCTURE? -- WHERE IS THE NATURAL MONOPOLY? -- THE REQUISITES OF PUBLIC POLICY -- Removal of Rate Distortions -- Removal of Entry Barriers -- Deregulation of Noncore Services -- Forbearance from Mandating Network Technology -- CONCLUSION -- REFERENCES -- NOTES -- State Regulatory Policies and the Telecommunications/Information Infrastructure -- INTRODUCTION -- CHANGES IN THE TELECOMMUNICATIONS INDUSTRY -- ROLE OF THE TELECOMMUNICATIONS INFRASTRUCTURE -- IMPLICATIONS FOR REGULATORY POLICY OBJECTIVES -- Traditional Regulatory Policy Objectives in Telecommunications -- Progressive Regulatory Policy Objectives -- Balancing Competing Objectives -- IMPLICATIONS FOR STATE REGULATORY POLICIES -- Reducing Rate Distortions: California's Implementation Rate Design -- Removing Entry Barriers to Local Exchange Competition -- Deregulating Noncore Services and Regulating the Price of Core Services: Price Cap Plans -- Kansas -- Michigan -- Nebraska -- Vermont -- North Dakota -- West Virginia -- CONCLUSION -- REFERENCES -- NOTES -- The Prospects for Meaningful Competition in Local Telecommunications -- INTRODUCTION -- PROSPECTS FOR COMPETITION -- Cable Company Competition with Telephone Companies -- Telephone Company Competition with Cable Companies -- SUMMARY AND CONCLUSIONS -- REFERENCES -- NOTES -- Regulation and Optimal Technological Change: Not Whether, But How -- NOTES -- The Future of Telecommunications Regulation: The Hard Work is Just Beginning -- INTRODUCTION -- PURPOSES OF REGULATION -- INFLATED MONOPOLY RATES AS A CUSHION AGAINST COMPETITION -- RATEPAYERS AS INVOLUNTARY INVESTORS -- CONCLUSION -- ACKNOWLEDGMENT -- REFERENCE -- NOTES.

Costs and Cross-Subsidies in Telecommunications -- REFERENCE -- Economic Ramifications of the Need for Universal Telecommunications Service -- Discussion -- Part 3 Public Investment in Telecommunications Infrastructure -- Introduction to Part 3 -- REFERENCE -- Government Investment in Telecommunications Infrastructure -- INTRODUCTION -- A Note on Definitions -- FEDERAL INVESTMENT IN TELECOMMUNICATIONS INFRASTRUCTURE -- Tax Incentives -- Direct Support of Research, Development, and Demonstrations -- Support of Telecommunications Networks and Systems -- Development and Support of Applications -- Support of Users -- Other Types of Federal Support -- SCALE OF FEDERAL INVESTMENT IN INFRASTRUCTURE -- RATIONALES FOR DIRECT FEDERAL SUPPORT -- DISCUSSION -- REFERENCES -- NOTES -- Federal Investment Through Subsidies: Pros and Cons -- MARKET FAILURES -- INSTRUMENTS FOR GOVERNMENTAL FUNDING -- SUPPLY-SIDE AND DEMAND-SIDE SUBSIDIES -- A STYLIZED MODEL -- Telecommunications Infrastructure from the Carrier's Point of View -- POINT ONE: PRIVATE-SECTOR INVESTMENT IS THE KEY TO TOMORROW'S INFRASTRUCTURE -- POINT TWO: REGULATORY POLICY IS CRITICAL TO PRIVATE-SECTOR INVESTMENT -- POINT THREE: THE PUBLIC SECTOR HAS A ROLE IN INFRASTRUCTURE DEVELOPMENT -- CONCLUSION -- REFERENCES -- NOTES -- An Information Provider's Perspective on Government Investment in the Telecommunications Infrastructure -- SHOULD THERE BE ANY (OR MORE) GOVERNMENT INVESTMENT IN INFRASTRUCTURE, FACILITIES, OR SERVICES? -- IS THERE A BENEFIT FROM GOVERNMENT-PROVIDED SEED FUNDING? -- DO GOVERNMENT-SUPPORTED SERVICES REALLY PUT A MEANINGFUL DAMPER ON INVESTMENT IN NEW OR BETTER SERVICES? -- HOW MUCH GOVERNMENT INVESTMENT WOULD BE TOO MUCH? -- Economic Dividends of Government Investment in Research and Technology Development -- R&D AND COMPUTER TECHNOLOGY -- R&D AND NETWORKING -- REFERENCES -- NOTES.

Perspective of the Noncarrier Transport Provider -- REFERENCE -- Discussion -- Appendix Contributors And Participants.