Telecommunications Law and Regulation an Introduction

This book examines national, regional, and international legal and regulatory frameworks governing the telecommunications sector, particularly the provision of all forms of network infrastructure, communication services, and equipment supplied for the transmission of data and information. The book is entitled ‘telecommunications’ rather than ‘communications’, despite the best attempts of European Union law to recast the terminology. Telecommunications remains the preferred term for a number of reasons. First, the change of regulatory terminology is still not reflected in industry discourse, let alone among the wider general public. Second, the book is intended as a text for a global audience, not just the UK or Europe, so it does not seem appropriate for EU terminology to be imposed on our readers. Third, the many historical and cross-jurisdictional aspects of the book recommend consistency as an aid to comprehension. The book does, however, use the terms ‘telecommunications’ and ‘communications’ interchangeably.