American experience in the development of national information infrastructure
In 1993, the U.S. government was one of the first to prepare a report with plans for the development of the national information infrastructure (Agenda for Action). To study the problems associated with the construction of this national and information infrastructure, a Working Group on Information Infrastructure (Information Infrastructure Task Forcee) was established.
9 basic principles of state regulation were proposed:
1) Encouraging private investment;
2) the concept of universal access;
3) assistance in technological innovation;
4) providing interactive access;
5) protection of privacy, security and reliability of networks;
6) Improved radio frequency spectrum management;
7) protection of intellectual property rights;
8) Coordination of government efforts;
9) ensuring access to government information.
The U.S. government has made the development of national information infrastructure and global information infrastructure a policy priority. It was recognized that the effectiveness of these processes depends primarily on the distribution of functions between the State and the private sector and their interaction. Thus, the private sector, as the main source of capital and experts, must, in response to market demands, determine which technologies to develop, set standards, and develop new services and products. The State, for its part, can facilitate the course of these processes by adopting appropriate laws and administrative regulation. The government can also provide leadership in these areas by supporting the testing of new technologies, facilitating the transfer of technology to the private sector, through the creation and development of applications.
Encourage private investment. To this end, it should:
eliminate barriers to private investment, adhere to policies that promote investment initiatives in the telecommunications and information markets;
Ensure that the laws and regulations applied are accessible, smart and non-discriminatory;
To develop cooperation with international financial institutions, in particular the World Bank and regional development banks to attract private and public capital.
To promote the development of competition. In this context, it was noted that competition leads to positive results: networks are constantly introducing new technologies, users have a greater choice of services and lower prices, suppliers are attentive to customer problems, low prices stimulate the use of telecommunications to this aspect, such actions by the state were recommended:
to increase competition at the local, national and international levels;
evaluate the measures taken to liberalize the market and competition in other countries;
constantly work to eliminate barriers to the development of competition;
to encourage newcomers to the market by combating the anti-competitive behavior of firms dominating these markets.
Provide access to networks. It was noted that fulfilling the tasks of the global information market requires government actions to ensure that all information service providers have access to equipment, networks and network services on a non-discriminatory basis and at a low price. By providing access to networks, the state promotes competition - as a result, the number of information services available to consumers increases significantly.
In cooperation with the private sector, the State can improve access to networks and provide a wide range of services. At the same time, the process of establishing uniform standards should be open and take place with the participation of large groups of interested manufacturers.
Thus, the optimal administrative and legislative regulation, in the opinion of the US government, should:
determine the goals and objectives that should be regulated by law, including ensuring competition;
be flexible enough to allow the introduction of new services and technologies without making additional amendments to legislation;
delegate broad powers to a regulatory body independent of the national operator;
establish an open process of stakeholder participation in the writing of regulatory rules;
to direct the process of formation of free market access based on non-discriminatory principles.
Attention is drawn to the fact that, regardless of the regulatory model, the rights of old and new operators should be clearly spelled out in the rules.
Newcomers should be protected from the fact that the dominant operators in the market interfere with the development of free competition.