"Integrated Services Digital Network-The Telecommunications Highway for Europe after 1992-or-Ideas Subscribers Don't Need?"

Fuchs, Gerhard. (1991) "Integrated Services Digital Network-The Telecommunications Highway for Europe after 1992-or-Ideas Subscribers Don't Need?". In: UNSPECIFIED, Fairfax, Virginia. (Unpublished)

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Abstract

The paper examines the policies of the EC aiming towards a coordinated introduction of an Integrated Services Digital Network (ISDN) in all member countries by 1993. ISDN originally was supposed to be a new telecommunications network that eventually would replace the old telephone network. ISDN is "...a network, in general evolving from a telephone IDN (Integrated Digital Network), that provides end-to-end digital connectivity to support a wide range of services, including voice and non-voice services, to which users have access by a limited set of standard multipurpose user-network interfaces" (CCITT). In this paper I will argue that the ISDN activities of the EC are somewhat trapped between the attempt to liberalize the so far closed and fragmented European telecommunications markets on the one hand and the aim to build up a strong independent European telecommunications industry and a European wide telecommunications network on the other hand. ISDN therefore cannot fulfil the expectations of the Commission.

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