Reviewed by Solveig Singleton*
New York, New York: Oxford University
Press, 1997
The subtitle of Peter Huber's Law and Disorder In Cyberspace proudly
proclaims the book's main theme: "Abolish the FCC and Let Common
Law Rule the Telecosm." Huber proposes a free-market revolution
for telephone, broadcasting, cable television, satellite and Internet
services--tempered with a few compromises (puzzlingly, he does not
seem to view the compromises as such). He would supplant broadcast
licensing with private ownership, and do away with price controls
and universal service entirely.
How free are the markets that Huber envisions? Not entirely. In
Huber's view, antitrust law is the "common law." In Huber's
view, even the nightmare of the MFJ decree is preferable to the
FCC. The strongest case for Huber's faith in antitrust might be
the lack of a politically acceptable alternative. He would not do
away with both antitrust and regulators; he believes some intervention
is necessary to combat monopoly--particularly, he agrees that interconnection
rights are necessary to introduce competition to local phone markets.
The best part of the book is Huber's rather saddening conclusion.
We must, he believes, put our trust in a common law "people's
constitution," because the Constitution has failed. With respect
to telecommunications law, he is correct. The Constitution has done
little to check the FCC's growing power and broad discretion over
the years. The battle now is to preserve the common law framework
that permits innovation to continue, because it will defeat the
FCC once and for all.
*Solveig Singleton is the director of Information Studies at the
Cato Institute and the Publications Vice Chairperson for the Telecommications
& Electronic Media Practice Group.
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