Broadband Telecommunications Technologies and Management

1Introduction

Preview Questions

• How do technology, business and policy considerations matter to the telecommunications industry?
• How does the telecommunications industry feature in the global economy?
• In recent years, which industry segment has filed the largest number of patents?
• What are the reasons for the phenomenal growth in the number of broadband subscribers in recent years?
• How may a broadband content/service provision functions and structure be characterised?

Learning Objectives

• An historical overview of the telecommunications industry
• An overview of the current state of the telecommunications industry
• An introduction to the technology–business–policy framework
• An introduction to the content/service, retail, infrastructure model for analysing broadband telecommunications businesses
• An introduction to telecommunications management and information and information technology management fields

Historical Note

An early example of a telecommunications system is the Royal Mail of the Persian Empire circa 500 BC. The Empire ruled over the region between the Indus River (present day India/Pakistan) and Thrace in the present day European Turkey. It also extended as far as Libya in North Africa. The Empire was divided into different ‘Satraps’ or provinces, which were ruled by governors appointed by the central government. To rule effectively, fast and reliable messaging between Susa the capital and provincial centres was necessary. However, the distances were prohibitively long, and the means ...