Competition and investment top agenda at ITU Global Symposium for Regulators

Thursday, 19 November 2009 13:48  |  James Barton

 Over 648 participants from 89 countries were present in Beirut at ITU’s 9^th Global Symposium for Regulators. Held from Tuesday 10 to Thursday 12 of November, the meeting sought to forge a shared vision and understanding of the many challenges now facing ICT regulators in increasingly complex converged markets.

Delegates stressed the responsibility of governments in opening markets to greater competition and providing incentives to stimulate investment in broadband networks, which increasingly play a vital role in the Knowledge Economy.

Since many operators have been forced to cut back on network development plans due to the financial crisis, another area that the meeting focussed on was the need for the public and private sectors to understand each other’s needs so that they might work cooperatively to support demand for ICT services.

This year’s GSR was chaired by Dr Kamal Shehadi, Chairman and CEO of Lebanese regulator TRA. In his opening address at the combined GILF/GSR opening on Monday 9 November, Dr Shehadi told participants that the deliberations of the global regulatory community can only be enriched by the active participation of the private sector: “I cannot stress enough the importance of the private sector as a partner in constantly improving and fine-tuning ICT regulations through an open and transparent process of public consultations”.

He went on to outline the universal values guiding regulatory best practice, saying “it is important that we consider not only the challenge posed by the world financial and economic crises, but also the opportunity and the promise of better regulation.”

While the financial crisis was a central topic of discussion, panellists participating in Session 2: Impact of the Financial Crisis on Regulation – Lessons Learned, moderated by FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski, were agreed that the economic downturn had largely spared the ICT sector, which continues to register steady, if slower, growth.

This was observed by the Director of ITU’s Telecommunication Development Bureau (BDT) Mr Sami Al Basheer Al Morshid in his opening address to the GSR on Tuesday 10 November. Mr Al Morshid noted that mobile penetration will reach 67% of the global population in 2009, representing 4.6 billion mobile subscriptions. ITU figures also show that over one quarter of the world’s population is now using the Internet.

However, he cautioned: "If we are to build on this success, finding common ground among ICT stakeholders will be critical to stimulating growth in a converged environment. ICT regulators and policy makers need to keep pace with a fast changing environment and carry out a delicate balancing act between a hands-on or hands-off approach.”

Just ahead of the opening of the GSR, the Global Industry Leaders Forum (GILF) was held on Monday 9 November. Chaired by Dr Saad Al Barrak, CEO of the Zain Group, the forum invited contributions from operators, manufacturers, developers, service providers and consultancies, and the resulting discussion identified the need for predictable, stable regulation, improved regional harmonisation of regulatory frameworks, more efficient management of radiofrequency spectrum, and a ‘light touch’ by regulators to allow markets to evolve naturally.

Regulators were urged to ensure that sufficient spectrum is available to support future growth. The GILF’s findings formed the basis of the GILF Chairman’s report, which was presented at the opening session of the GSR for consideration by delegates representing the ICT regulatory community.

The GSR covered numerous topics – among them consumer protection, universal access, IP interconnection, mobile termination rates and voice over IP – but perhaps most significant was the development of a new set of Best Practice Guidelines to help regulators develop strategies to meet the needs of a converged environment.

The Guidelines cover four key areas considered essential in today’s ITC marketplace:

• the need to promote convergence;
• to build stronger, more effective national regulatory institutions;
• to use regulation to stimulate ongoing market investment; and
• to promote innovative new services that can benefit consumers and help ‘connect the unconnected’.

Competition is identified as a key factor for a healthy converged environment, and the Guidelines stress the importance of:

• appropriate interconnection arrangements;
• NGN technologies;
• flexible numbering;
• assignment & reservation regimes;
• technology neutrality;
• promotion of broadband rollout; and
• environmental considerations when using ICTs.

In addition to this, they emphasise the role of governments and regulators in stimulating demand for ICT services and applications, as well as overcoming problems such as poor ICT literacy, cybersecurity, lack of content in local languages, and insufficient availability of low-cost access devices. Partnerships between public and private sectors are recommended, while governments are encouraged to use public funds where private sector investment is lacking.

In his closing remarks to delegates on Thursday 12 November, BDT Director Sami Al Basheer said the outstanding success of this year’s GILF and GSR confirmed the meetings’ relevance to global ICT markets, and affirmed ITU’s central role as a platform for sharing knowledge and building consensus among diverse stakeholders.

More info: 

• www.tra.gov.lb
• www.itu.int/ITU-D/partners/GILF/2009/index.html
• www.itu.int/GSR09 

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