정보통신산업과 독과점규제

Abstract

In Korea, the government has controlled the telecommunications system since 1960, because the telecommunications service was considered to be a public service. However, such control systems have been increasingly ineffective as advances in technology have expanded the capacity of telecommunications networks, and new systems and services have been developed which allow people to by-pass traditional infrastructures. Moreover, the rapid change in the social and economic environments has made existing telecommunications legislation and regulation irrelevant and redundant in an increasing number of cases. The Korean government has endeavored to restructure and deregulate the telecommunications industry since 1980. As a result, new providers have been able to enter the international call, long distance call and mobile phone sectors since 1990, and also the local call sector since 1997. However, the telecommunications industry is still suffering from the obligations imposed by various redundant government regulations, and is in the process of transforming from a regulated industry to a competitive one. At the same time, telecommunications operators are obliged to comply with the requirements of competition law, as the Korean Fair Trade Commission has been applying the Monopoly Regulation and Fair Trade Act to the telecommunications industry since 1987. Applying competition laws and government regulations to the telecommunications industry raises manifold conflicts which may impede the further development of the industry. The aim of this paper is to analyse the special characteristics of the telecommunications industry and provide an overview of the government regulations and competition laws of relevance. It identifies legal issues involving the harmonisation of government regulations and competition law, the problem regarding essential facilities, the impact of administrative guidance on cartel behaviour, and the relationship between prohibited practices and unfair trade practices, and then suggests solutions to these issues.