Law and regulation of common carriers in the communications industry

This revised casebook-plus-commentary offers a basic introduction to the traditional regulation of telephone companies as well as the new lines of businesses they have entered. Drawing on historical and contemporary court decisions as well as on FCC and legislative materials, Brenner documents and evaluates the past twenty years of regulation of the telecommunications industry. In particular, he traces the major regulatory changes from the time of AT&T's single-firm dominance to the increasingly competitive marketplace of today. The law and literature necessary to understand the development and trends in telecommunications are voluminous and, up until now, have been difficult to locate in one place. This book presents the critical concepts and shifts in communications policy coherently and concisely. In this revised and expanded edition, Brenner provides excerpts and comments upon the key decisions in the field, ordering them in a readily accessible manner. He assumes no specialized background in technology, law, or economics. Brenner provides an ideal introduction to this increasingly important field for professionals as well as for scholars and students interested in communications and communications policy.