ABSTRACT
This chapter considers the evolution of the current industry structure in the telecommunications sector and the emergence of Deutsche Telekom from a domestic monopoly provider to an internationally positioned company. It analyzes the past role of the state in infrastructure provision up to the mid 1980s when the state monopoly and the role of the state as an operator were challenged by large users. The chapter examines whether this was to some extent due to external policy factors and the imitation of policies employed in other countries that had engaged in early liberalisation, for instance the UK or the United States. It also analyzes the evolution of the German telecommunications industry structure and the emergence of Deutsche Telekom from a domestic monopoly provider to an internationally positioned company. Deutsche Telekom had created a separate nucleus for its activities in competitive markets early on through its privately managed subsidiary Detecon, a consulting company majority-owned by Deutsche Bank, but run by Deutsche Telekom.
