Telecommunication competition places Finland as one of the world leaders. As of 1994, the Finnish telecommunications industry has been opened for competition. Competition exists for local and long distance calls, data transmission, radio telephone services, corporate networks, and intelligent network (IN) services. The government encourages and supports competition in the telecommunications field.
Detailed History
The history of Finland's telecommunications industry begins in 1855 when Finland was under the control of the Russian Emperor. The first telegraph line was installed between St. Petersburg and Helsinki in order to serve the Russian army and government. Requests by the Finnish authorities for control of the telegraph were consistently refused by the Russian Czar.
The first telephone line was constructed in 1877. The first telephone company appeared in 1882. The Finnish senate passed a declaration to issue telephone concessions in 1886 as several local telcos were operational. Licenses were only granted to companies outside the control of the Russian government. This established a national telephone service that was outside the control of the Russian government.
From 1882 to 1938 the number of telephone companies exploded. In 1938, 815 local telephone companies were operating. The explosion of telephone companies were due to two specific reasons.
1. The Russian government. Finland attempted to hamper Russian control of the telecommunications industry by granting as many concessions to local telephone companies. The decision to create several private companies, instead of one large government owned company, was made to deter Russia to take control of the companies. Finland authorities believed it would be harder for Russia to overtake several private firms compared to one large entity.
2. Finland's government believed the telecommunications market was extremely attractive and refused to regulate it more than was necessary.
Telecom Finland, the one state owned PTT, was taken over by Finland after independence in 1917. Telecom Finland became a monopoly in long distance and international services. Telecom Finland expanded its telephone line share from 1.3% in 1932 to 25% in 1993. This monopoly was broken solely by the liberalization of the telecommunications market in 1994.
Many of the local companies have been forced to merge due to automation, competition, increased technical standards and level of investment necessary. The local companies operate in specific geographic areas. The telcos are subscriber owned companies. Currently there are 49 local telephone companies in existence. (Go to Telecommunications Infrastructure for numbers and key players.)
Overall control of telecommunications lies with the Ministry of Transport and Communications. The Telecommunications Administration Center and the Ministry supervise the development and maintenance of the public network to satisfy the needs of the country. Drafting new legislation and regulations, within the current policies of the government, is a responsibility of the Ministry. The Telecommunications Administration Center is responsible for:
* Enforcement of regulations
* Coordination of international cooperation
* Preparation of technical regulations and standards
* Inspection and approval of equipment
It should be noted that the Telecommunications Administration Center is under the Ministry of Transport and Communications.
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Last Update: 2 May 1997