Captive Audience：The Telecom Industry and Monopoly Power in the New Gilded Age

Tenyearsago,theUnitedStatesstoodattheforefrontoftheInternetrevolution.Withsomeofthefastestspeedsandlowestpricesintheworldforhigh-speedInternetaccess,thenationwaspoisedtobethegloballeaderinthenewknowledge-basedeconomy.Todaythatglobalcompetitiveadvantagehasallbutvanishedbecauseofaseriesofgovernmentdecisionsandresultingmonopoliesthathavealloweddozensofcountries,includingJapanandSouthKorea,topassusinbothspeedandpriceofbroadband.Thissteadyslidebackwardnotonlydeprivesconsumersofvitalservicesneededinacompetitiveemploymentandbusinessmarket-italsothreatenstheeconomicfutureofAmerica.ThisimportantbookbyleadingtelecommunicationspolicyexpertSusanCrawfordexploreswhyAmericansarenowpayingmuchmorebutgettingmuchlesswhenitcomestohigh-speedInternetaccess.Usingthe2011mergerbetweenComcastandNBCUniversalasalens,CrawfordexamineshowwehavecreatedthebiggestmonopolysincethebreakupofStandardOilacenturyago.Intheclearestterms,thisbookexploreshowtelecommunicationsmonopolieshaveaffectedthedailylivesofconsumersandAmerica'sglobaleconomicstanding.