International Regulation of Postal Communications

The article provides a concise overview of the rules applicable to postal communications at the international level. Particular attention is paid to the regulations of the Universal Postal Union (UPU), the General Agreement on Trade in Services (GATS) of the World Trade Organization (WTO), as well as the relationship between the two. Outlook on possible future developments accounting for the rapid technological advances and the liberalisation of markets wraps the analysis up. This is a 2010 update that takes into consideration the changes made in the UPU acts in 2008, as well as the latest developments in the WTO's Doha Round negotiations.

Electronic Communications as a Distinct and Unique Object of Regulation

The present paper is an abridged version of the first chapter to the book EC Electronic Communications and Competition Law (London: Cameron May, 2007). It is intended to pinpoint the contours of the communications sector as an object of regulation - an exercise that is essential to any thoughts on appropriate regulatory design. The communications sector is defined through its salient features of being (i) network-bound; (ii) dynamic; (iii) converging; (iv) sensitive to regulation and society’s reactions; and as one (v) with special societal role and as (vi) part of the new economy.