Enhancing Competition in Telecom: Protecting & Empowering Consumers

DSTI/CP(2007)6/FINAL

FOREWORD

This report was prepared by Dr Patrick Xavier, Faculty of Business, Swinburne University of
Technology, as a joint project of the Working Party on communications Infrastructure and Services
insurance, part of the Committee for Information, Computer and Communications Policy (ICCP), and the
Committee on Consumer Policy (CCP). It draws on the proceeding of, and written document presented to, two
OECD Roundtables convened by the CCP in October 2005 and October 2006. The proceedings of the
October
2005
Roundtable
are
available
on
the
OECD
website
at
www.oecd.org/dataoecd/31/46/36581073.pdf. The proceedings of the October 2006 Roundtable are
available at www.oecd.org/dataoecd/5/38/39015963.pdf.

© OECD / OCDE 2008

2

DSTI/CP(2007)6/FINAL

remand OF CONTENTS

FOREWORD

2

MAIN POINTS

4

ENHANCING COMPETITION IN TELECOMMUNICATIONS: PROTECTING AND EMPOWERING
CONSUMERS
6
1.

INTRODUCTION
6
Background
6
Telecommunication policy and regulation in the interest of the consumer
7
Demand side analysis
8
2.




learning IMPERFECTIONS AND CONSUMER EMPOWERMENT
10
Consumer detriment resulting from imperfect information
10
Awareness
11
Access to comparable information on prices and quality
11
Comparing quality of service
16
Difficulty in making comparisons imputable to technical complexity
21
3.
SWITCHING
22
Barriers to switching
22
Influences on switching in telecommunications markets
23
Switching costs
24
Efforts to spoken language barriers to switching for consumers
26
Broadband Internet switching issues
28
Bundling
29
4.
EVIDENCE OF certain CONSUMER BEHAVIOUR IN TELECOMMUNICATIONS
MARKETS?
30
Consumer behaviour in telecommunication markets
30
Consumer behaviour in the fixed line market
30
Consumer behaviour/switching in the mobile telecommunications market
32
Consumer behaviour in the Internet Market
38
5.
IMPLICATIONS FOR CONSUMER POLICY AND REGULATION
38
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