PDF of this tutorialThe Strategy
While there are regional variations in timetables, specific regulatory directives, and technological penetration, communications and interconnection around the world are, for the most part, being driven by four universal trends.
Deregulation or Market Liberalization
Countries on every continent are abandoning the old models in which communications were controlled by state-run monopolies. Instead, markets are being opened to competitive carriers—throughout Europe they are known as other licensed operators (OLOs)—and incumbents are being forced to modernize, compete for customers based on price and service quality, and grant network access to competitors.
New Regulatory Mandates
To support competition; voice, video, and data convergence; and broad access to advanced services, regulatory bodies are issuing mandates directing carriers to participate in number portability, carrier preselection, emergency services such as enhanced 911, and network unbundling—all of which require carrier-to-carrier interaction.
Digital Subscriber Line (DSL) Explosion
Skyrocketing demand for data and Internet access is a global phenomenon that is driving the adoption of DSL technology, which turns traditional voice networks into data highways. It has also spawned a new industry of data local-exchange carriers (DLECs)—another segment of competitors needing "last mile" access to end users.
| 1999 | 2000 | 2001 | 2002 | 2003 | 2004 | 2005 | |
| World Totals | 76 | 1,136 | 6,757 | 14,449 | 22,528 | 36,963 | 65,529 |
| Total of U.S. and Canada | 38 | 608 | 2,839 | 8,993 | 12,938 | 18,926 | 31,108 |
| Total of Europe | 29 | 354 | 1,411 | 2,804 | 5,343 | 8,723 | 12,773 |
| Total of South America, Central America, and the Caribbean | 0 | 0 | 40 | 141 | 311 | 1,096 | 2,869 |
| Total of Central Asia | 0 | 28 | 147 | 181 | 328 | 628 | 1,424 |
| Total of Asia-Pacific | 9 | 146 | 1,314 | 2,266 | 3,436 | 6,723 | 14,047 |
| Total of Middle East and Africa | 0 | 0 | 6 | 64 | 172 | 867 | 3,309 |
Table 1. Installed Base of Access Network Lines (000s) for Beginning of Each Year Shown
Source: OVUM Ltd. & Yankee Group
Proliferation of Players
The telecom industry is no longer populated by a homogeneous community of voice carriers. Carriers today represent a mix of players that grows bigger and more diverse every day thanks to the demand for and advances in wireless technologies and data services.
These drivers do not just make an airtight case for interconnection. But just as we have seen in the United States, they also make the case for an approach to interconnection that can handle a multitude of diverse players operating on national, regional, and global scales.
