De facto regulatory decision-making processes in telecommunications regulation: the case of Colombia

Research on regulation has focused on explaining the independence of sector regulators and assessing the effects of regulations on markets. This paper broadens the scope by studying how regulatory actors interact at the de... [ view full abstract ]

Research on regulation has focused on explaining the independence of sector regulators and assessing the effects of regulations on markets. This paper broadens the scope by studying how regulatory actors interact at the de facto level in a multi-actor regulatory arrangement when making regulatory decisions in the telecommunications sector of Colombia. We propose that the outcome of regulatory decisions depends on the manner in which the actors involved in the sector influence each other. To measure this, we performed a Social Network Analysis and used an exponential random graph model to analyze the data. Our findings suggest that various actors influence the regulatory decision-making process and that their level of influence is affected by the access they have to other organizations, the divergence of interests they have, the types of resources they control, and the exchange of officials between organizations. Additionally, there are structural network characteristics that affect regulatory decision-making.