Regulation - the Corridor to Liberalization: The Experience of the Israeli Phone Market 1984-2005

55 Pages Posted: 27 Oct 2006 Last revised: 24 Dec 2022

See all articles by Reuben Gronau

Reuben Gronau

Hebrew University of Jerusalem - Department of Economics; National Bureau of Economic Research (NBER)

Date Written: October 2006

Abstract

An important part of the literature on regulatory economics is based on the US experience, where a well-established regulator faces a privately owned monopoly. It is sometimes forgotten that this model does not apply in many places where a newly established regulator faces a government owned, or a newly privatized, company. It definitely does not apply to the case of the Israeli communication industry where the government serves as regulator and at the same time is the owner of the wireline monopolist. The paper follows the regulatory experience of the Israeli communication industry over the last 20 years, analyzing its impact on consumers' welfare, the monopoly's profitability and its productivity. Though the Israeli institutions may look to a Western observer today as unique they were quite common in most of the developed economies prior to the wave of privatizations and deregulation in the 90s. The lessons learned from the Israeli experience have, however, more than a historic interest, and may be relevant for the regulatory process in general.

Suggested Citation

Gronau, Reuben, Regulation - the Corridor to Liberalization: The Experience of the Israeli Phone Market 1984-2005 (October 2006). NBER Working Paper No. w12617, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=938410

Reuben Gronau (Contact Author)

Hebrew University of Jerusalem - Department of Economics ( email )

Mount Scopus
Jerusalem, 91905
Israel
972-2-588-3145 (Phone)

National Bureau of Economic Research (NBER)

1050 Massachusetts Avenue
Cambridge, MA 02138
United States

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