Nations vary in the degree and scope to which they regulate the media.  In Europe, regulation is centered around media ownership, less so around content.  In the People’s Republic of China, content deemed inappropriate by the government is regulated by a slew of agencies.

Some regions of the world are already or are becoming more regulated:

• In the European Union, lawmakers are poised to create a telecommunications regulator called the Body of European Regulators of Electronic Communications.²²   Currently, some European states ignore or defy EU telecommunications law if doing so would harm their national telephone monopolies, some of which are still under total or partial control and ownership of the state.²³For example, Germany is allowing Deutsche Telekom—32 percent of which is still owned by the national government—to bar competitors from using its super-high-speed VDSL broadband network.²⁴   Although illegal, cases such as these could take too long to resolve before the European Court of Justice; the new EU regulator, would, in theory, be quicker in resolving disputes, allowing decisions to have a more rapid effect on markets.²⁵  Additionally, the regulator would harmonize member nations’ rules and practices on pricing and network access.²⁶
• In the People’s Republic of China, policy changes by the government in the late 1970s had a widespread and profound effect on most aspects of Chinese society, including the media.  The period of 1980-1999 saw the deregulation of media content and a decrease in subsidies of media industries.²⁷Before deregulation and the ending of subsidies, the government issued content guidelines which media agencies would follow.  After deregulation and the ending of subsidies, media agencies have greater freedoms in creating content, although subjects deemed taboo by the government are still heavily regulated and sometimes even censored.  However, the state still regulates²⁸  investment in media infrastructure, such as high-speed Internet networks, and generally exerts much control over media content.²⁹

Google’s Vint Cerf on the Future of Internet Regulation

Vint Cerf, known as one of the “fathers” of the Internet and current Google executive, spoke to Informilo about the future of Internet regulation:  http://www.informilo.com/20090302/googles-vint-cerf-future-internet-regulation-86

22 O’Brien, Kevin J. “E.U. Poised to Establish Telecommunications Regulator.” The New York Times. 30 March 2009

23 Ibid.

24 Ibid.

25 Ibid.

26 Ibid.

27 Donald, Stephanie Hemelryk and Michael Keane. “Media in China: New Convergences, New Approaches.” Media in China: Consumption, Content and Crisis. p. 6

28 Ibid.

29 “Google Sensors itself for China.” BBC News. January 25, 2006.

Next: Deregulation