Lessons from Deregulation: Telecommunications and Airlines After the Crunch [Paperback]

Alfred E. Kahn (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0815748191 | ISBN-13: 978-0815748199 | Publication Date: February 2004

Over the last several years, the value of stocks in both the airline and the telecommunications industries have dropped catastrophically. Since these industries were among the most importantand most visibleto have been unleashed from regulation in recent decades (albeit in widely differing degree), their difficulties have raised the question of whether their deregulation should be reconsidered or even reversed. Alfred E. Kahn, one of the foremost authorities on deregulation, argues in this book that every passing year demonstrates the superiority of the road chosen for the airlines. He contrasts the financial meltdowns of both the airline and telecommunications industries with others taking place at the same time, particularly in technology-related stocks and dot.coms, pointing out that these sectors were also relatively free of direct economic regulation. Their experience provides a useful counter to the natural tendency to blame all the woes of aviation and telecommunications on government policy. This book provides a valuable and accessible guide to unraveling the complex world of network deregulation. It will serve as a reference point for practioners and policymakers, as well as an important introduction for the general public.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Alfred E. Kahn is the preeminent authority on public utility deretulation in the United States and author of the classic two-volume The Economics of Regulation: Principles and Institutions (Wiley, 1970-71). He served as an economic adviser to President Carter and chairman of the New York Public Service Commission, the Civil Aeronautics Board, and the Council on Wage and Price Stability. He is the Robert Julius Thorne Professor of Political Economy, Emeritus, at Cornell University.

Product Details

• Paperback: 88 pages
• Publisher: Brookings Inst Pr (February 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0815748191
• ISBN-13: 978-0815748199
• Product Dimensions: 9.1 x 6 x 0.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 5.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,684,360 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars At least he's consistent, January 1, 2005

By 

John R. Levine "jrlevine" (Trumansburg, NY USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Lessons from Deregulation: Telecommunications and Airlines After the Crunch (Paperback)

In this short book, Fred Kahn gives us his take on airline and telephone deregulation. He thinks they're both swell. His analysis of phone dereg is well thought out, as you'd expect from the person most identified with it, but I fould his analysis of telephone dereg much less persuasive. He lines up solidly on the side of the Bells, and although some of his arguments are clearly true, e.g., you can't create true competition by forcing one competitor to sell below cost to another, in all I found him far too accepting of the Bells' self serving arguments.

Kahn writes well, and even if you disagree with him, he's well worth reading. Any student of industrial policy or regulation should invest an hour and read this book, either on paper or the PDF on the publisher's web site.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A Good Read!, December 21, 2004

By 

Rolf Dobelli "getAbstract" (Switzerland) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Lessons from Deregulation: Telecommunications and Airlines After the Crunch (Paperback)

You would hardly expect economist Alfred E. Kahn, the grandfather of deregulation, to back down on the concept now - and he doesn't. This helpful, up-to-date guide gives a snapshot of Kahn's take on the state of aviation and telecommunications deregulation amid the economic struggles of the post-bubble, post-Sept. 11 era. Does deregulation still serve the public's interest? Kahn, whom you can thank or curse the next time you board a cheap, overcrowded flight, argues staunchly that deregulation's biggest problems come from regulatory authorities who succumb to the temptation to, well, regulate. This is particularly true in the arcane field of telecommunications policy, where some governmental bodies have passed regulations designed to stimulate artificial, rather than market-driven, competition. Overall, the book is stronger when Kahn analyzes the complexities of aviation deregulation than it is when he unravels telecommunications policy. We highly recommend it to policy wonks who love what Kahn hath wrought and to those who wish they could hang up on it.