Regulating Communications: British Public Policy Responses to Convergence within the Digital Age

Abstract

The British Labour government believes that Information Communication Technologies (ICTs) will facilitate future forms of production, services, and investment within the national and global economies. However, it remains unclear how the government can establish the appropriate national regulatory structures through which to supervise the virtual economy. The sector-specific definitions which have existed between the audiovisual and e-commerce industries are less appropriate and, with the expansion of distribution, audiovisual markets are assuming the characteristics of the telecommunications markets. This report will consider British public policy initiatives for the regulation of the converging ICTs and the audiovisual industries. It will pay attention to the Department of Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) and the Department of Trade and Industry's (DTI) jointly produced 1998 Green Paper Regulating Communications: Approaching Convergence in the Information Age.