The Pulitzer Prize-wimming author of The Prize joins a leading expert on the global economy to present an incisive narrative of the risks and opportunities that are emerging as the balance of power shifts around the world between governments and markets -- and the battle over globalization comes front and center. The Commanding Heights is essential for understanding the struggle over the "new rules of the game" for the twenty-first century.

Network industries such as electricity, gas, rail, local public transport, telecommunications and postal services are recognised by the EU as crucial for fostering European social and territorial cohesion. Providing an overview of key policy reforms in these industries and an empirical evaluation, this thought-provoking book offers a critical perspective on the functioning of the networks that provide vital services to EU citizens. Key features include: analysis of policy reforms and their effects on the welfare of citizens as users an innovative focus on the neglected topic of the role of state-owned or state-invested enterprises assessment of changes in policy framework reform from the consumer's point of view a comparative country analysis evaluation of cross-cutting issues related to reform including privatisation, unbundling, performance and impact. The Reform of Network Industries will appeal to academic researchers in the fields of industrial economics, policy and regulation and the economics of European integration, as well as students of business and law. Policymakers, regulators and public administrators will also find this book a stimulating read. Contributors include: P. Bance, R. Cardinale, P. Castelnovo, A. Chassy, S. Clo, A. Cosic, L. Diestelmeier, J. Doleschel, S. Drufuca, G. Esposito, M. Florio, S. Groenblom, R. Hirsch, T. Holvad, T. Kaloud, M. Lampropoulou, A. Maxim, A. Negrelli, T.A. Nguyen, N. Rosetto, A. Roukouni, R.P. Sanchez, S. Thomas, J. Urban-Kozlowska, J. Willner

Privatization has dominated industrial restructuring programs since the 1980s and continues to do so. This authoritative and accessible Handbook considers all aspects of this key issue, including: the theory of privatization; privatization in transition, developed and developing economies; as well the economic regulation of privatized industries. The studies in this volume, introduced by international experts in the field present evidence of the scope and effects of privatization, and consequently provide the basis for improving both policy formulation and implementation. However, they also emphasize that privatization is not an end in itself. It is argued that for privatization to be worthwhile and for lasting economic efficiency gains to be achieved, supporting reforms must accompany most privatization programs, particularly in the arenas of corporate governance and capital markets, product market competition, and state regulatory processes. Furthermore, several contributions demonstrate that the degree to which ownership and market liberalization can be usefully separated, and whether privatization without either competition or effective regulation is worthwhile, remain controversial issues. Furnishing the reader with a comprehensive and lively discussion of privatization in theory and practice, this Handbook will be the essential source of information for researchers in the field, and for a wide-ranging audience including public policy makers and specialists, development experts and agencies, international banks, public policy and regulation economists, and management consultants.

The provision of water and sanitation services (WSS) in developing countries has traditionally been the preserve of the state, but recently there has been a move towards greater private sector participation (PSP). While the potential economic benefits of PSP are well-known, the authors extensively discuss the environmental and social implications unique to the sector. The focus of the book is on the crucial role public authorities must continue to play to guarantee sustainability, levels of service and access to a variety of consumers. The authors show how these objectives are realised in very different ways - and not always successfully - in developing countries. The authors critically review the current literature and include new case studies from Manila, Buenos Aires, Cordoba, Abidjan and Mexico City. Private Firms and Public Water will be of interest to regulatory officials, economists, development professionals and scholars, as well as government, business and NGOs.

Privatization investment funds are the key feature of mass privatization programmes in transitional economies. This book offers a thorough survey of mass privatization programmes in the Czech Republic, Poland and Slovenia, supported with extensive empirical analysis. The study of 'top-down' privatization funds in Poland and 'bottom-up' funds in the Czech Republic and Slovenia offers different solutions to the problem of how to improve the governance of privatization funds. The authors argue that the institutional structure of closed-end investment companies and open-end mutual funds has not provided the right incentives to maximize the value for the shareholders. In addition too many regulations are in place in underdeveloped markets to protect new shareholders unaccustomed to exercising their ownership rights. Instead, the authors argue that they need to promote adjustment in fund portfolios and ownership structures in order to spur the development of capital markets and effective mechanisms of corporate governance.

This book offers an expert examination of the ideology and motives behind the privatization or the nationalization of an industry, based on real case studies. Is it always more effective and less expensive to use taxpayer dollars to engage private companies rather than have the government run enterprises itself? Do consumers always benefit from the privatization of services? What happens when privatization stops being an abstract, theoretical debate and is actually put to the test in the real world? Privatize This? Assessing the Opportunities and Costs of Privatization is the place to find out. Privatize This? provides a clear, easy-to-apply model for evaluating the pros and cons of the privatization process and then puts the model to work in examining nine real-world case studies-ranging from Spain's privatization of its cigarette industry to Pennsylvania's "state store system" for selling liquor. Throughout, the book focuses on the central issues of privatization-profit versus public good, protection from fraud and waste-while also showing how the recent economic upheaval has changed public opinion and public policy on privatization. Nine case studies of privatization in a variety of contexts: cigarette and alcohol sales, oil production, port facilities, public transportation, prison management, and lotteries Charts and figures for production and costs throughout each case study A bibliography for each case study, as well as a comprehensive bibliography for the entire book A comprehensive index of all topics, firms, policymakers, and important terminology

The volume focuses on privatisation in transition countries, addressing issues ranging from corporate governance to the relationship between privatisation and the emergence of markets, from a multi-disciplinary perspective. The contributors investigate both the theoretical groundwork of privatisation and enterprise restructuring as well as recent empirical evidence. The contributions show that changes in ownership titles are but one part of the story, being closely interwoven as they are with the transformation of corporate governance, enterprise restructuring, network transformation and the emergence of markets.

Worldwide, the electric utility industry has been changing over the last several years as deregulation and privatization have been instituted. These changes in how the industry does business are summarized, and the evolving experience of the deregulation in 15 major countries is analyzed. In addition to the analysis, theoretical models and detailed case studies are provided to illustrate the changes. Utility regulatory agency personnel, utility management staff, and research professionals will all be interested in this work.

Before the energy crisis of the 1970s, electricity provision was a non-issue the world over, but the crisis of 1973 induced policymakers worldwide to consider private and restructured electricity provision as an alternative to unified, publicly and privately owned systems. Czamanski examines arguments and experiences concerning the divestitute of state-owned enterprises in a variety of political and technological contexts. He also considers restructuring under the Thatcher government in Great Britian, the reforms drafted by Czamanski in Israel, and restructuring in the United States as well as events in Norway, the Pacific Rim, Canada, and the developing countries. In addition, he considers the advantages and disadvantages of privatizing through theoretical discussion and by exploring experiences in various countries.

Nationally recognized scholars and practitioners examine opportunities in which services traditionally provided by local governments are offered by the private sector though a contract or are transferred to a private business completely. Many large U.S. cities have contracted services for many years. With the movement to rightsize governments in recent years there has been renewed interest by local governments in similar ventures. Privatization, in its many forms, is now seen as a viable alternative to traditional ways of providing public services and can bring substantial benefits to residents. With greater accountability being demanded and pressures on local officials to hold the line on or reduce taxes, efforts to find innovative service delivery methods will probably increase. Cities, such as Atlanta, Indianapolis, and Charlotte, are examples showing that contracts with private businesses can work to benefit all parties. Local officials must move ahead cautiously, and not all attempts at privatization or contracting have succeeded. Some cities, after an evaluation, have decided to provide services with municipal employees.

The main issues underlying privatization decisions will be addressed conceptually so that practitioners and academics benefit from a review of the current thinking on the issues. At the same time, exemplary practices and case studies are included so that readers can understand how privatization and managed competition have been implemented in local governments. Special attention is paid to administrative questions that may arise during the implementation process. For example, ways in which cities have worked with employees who fear displacement because of the privatization process are described. The book breaks new ground by including references to recent innovations in public-private partnerships and describing how privatization may evolve in the future.

Dininio examines patterns of industrial assistance in the new German "Lander" (federal states) during the difficult transition from central planning to a market economy. She identifies the restructuring assistance given by the privatization agency, the "Treuhandanstalt" and the new federal state governments as the chief instruments of eastern industrial policy. In seeking to explain how the aid was allocated, Dr. Dininio examines the interests and policy resources of state and societal actors. The analysis shows that institutions condition to a significant extent the societal forces to which state actors respond in their policy choices.

In the case of East Germany, the interplay of institutions and circumstances led to a large-firm bias. The unitary business and labor organizations that were extended into the East could not accommodate the divergent interests of new members and so failed to lobby on their behalf for industrial assistance. While societal actors remained relatively passive, state actors intervened on behalf of select firms. The primacy of certain state actors but not others in these interventions as well as their primary policy agendas, derived from the institutional contours of the German polity. First, the constitution of a federal agency to privatize 13,000 firms singly and under severe time pressure prompted agency officials to give priority to large firms in the interest of expediency. Second, the dominance of the executive branch enabled Chancellor Kohl to help his supporters in the chemical industry and at Carl Zeiss Jena as well as troubled firms of national significance, such as the shipyards and the giant steel mill EKO-Stahl. Third, the federal structure of the government gave "Lander" officials significant resources to support big employers in their state, especially those from regionally dominant industries.

William Tye draws on his large body of work in the area of railroad deregulation to address specific economic problems associated with deregulation. He elucidates principles that can be applied to any major industry entering the competitive marketplace--particularly telecommunications and other utilities, including gas and electric. Tye has updated and revised his previous articles and structured them into an integrated framework. Each section addresses a major issue and can be read on a stand-alone basis. By providing appropriate economic models and rules for successful transition, this work is designed to encourage a smooth changeover to deregulation.

It is important, Tye says, to recognize that the original problems regulation sought to solve do not simply go away, and that new problems can be created by the transition itself. He stresses the need to deal with legacies from the regulated past, such as investments, policies, labor contracts, and sunk investment costs by buyers. He explains why explicit regulatory intervention may be required to correct equity and efficiency imbalances. Sections cover topics such as finance and revenue adequacy, pricing, mergers, and competitive access and will serve as a valuable resource for attorneys, regulatory commission staff, academics, and consultants.

International marketing consultant Russell Miller takes a close, pragmatic look at the movement to privatization that is sweeping the important markets of Western and Central Europe, Latin America, and Asia, and lays out the business opportunities and challenges that U.S. corporations and others worldwide will find there. He identifies the market dynamics created by newly privatized companies, the problems of reaching them, and the approach strategies that U.S. and other companies would find most productive, such as the creation of strategic alliances, enterprise restructurings, expanded technical relationships, and export market development. He also identifies the methods, objectives, and locations of leading privatization programs. The result is a rich, useful study of the vast new markets now opening up worldwide, and insights into how corporations here and abroad can access them and benefit from them. Essential reading for top-level executives in corporations with aspirations abroad, and for their marketing, strategic planning, and international business development staffs. During the past decade, thousands of former state-controlled companies in more than 100 different countries have entered the private sector. These firms range in size and commercial significance from small family-owned kiosks in Russia to some of the largest, most influential corporations in Western and Central Europe, Latin America, and Asia. Miller provides a comprehensive, business-oriented perspective on the origin and geographic expansion of the privatization movement, and describes the methods that governments use and the objectives they hope to achieve in the divestment of state assets. He identifies theformative influences on these new companies, as well as the operating needs created by the privatization process. Privatization-intensive markets are examined in relation to their importance, type of companies involved, and the challenges they present. Miller's book also discusses alternate methods of market expansion, such as reaching newly privatized firms through a strategic marketing program. His book will be essential reading for academicians and graduate students in international business and world trade, as well as their practitioner counterparts in corporations and multilateral development agencies.

For a variety of reasons market-oriented improvement efforts are becoming increasingly visible on the educational reform landscape. In particular, privatization strategies, such as vouchers and contracting out, are receiving considerable attention at all levels of educational governance and administration. Our objective in this volume is to help the educational community develop a deeper understanding of the privatization movement in general and the major pathways to privatization in particular.

This book is a study of the actors and institutions that shaped decision-making on privatization in the Russian oil industry between 1992 and 2006. Li-Chen analyzes the origins of privatization as a policy on a macro, industry-wide level, as well as presenting three in-depth case studies of privatization on a company level.

As import-substitution industrialization yields to increasing market liberalization in Latin America in the 1990s, privatization assigns new roles to both the public and private sectors. After the decade of the debt crisis, a much weakened State will reorient its policy efforts to the difficult issues of limited fiscal and monetary choices, regulation of newly privatized firms, and long-postponed social programs. However, privatization represents a mhallenge for the private sector as much as it is an issue for the public sector. Foreign and domestic capital will be asked to play a critical role in revitalizing battered economies. New players, from penny-capitalists to pension funds, and new institutions, including dramatically altered banking systems and suddenly thriving stock markets, have recently appeared. The changing roles of public and private sectors and the implications of these developments are the focus of this book.

Why were the European middle classes ready to acquiesce in neo-liberalism? This book argues that upward mobility, the growth of individual and family assets, the growing significance of private provision, and processes of individualization contributed to a major transformation of the middle classes, making them more prone to embrace inequality and market principles. It shows how the self-interest of large sections of the middle classes undermined social democracy and paved the way for neo-liberal reforms, making their socio-economic positioning ever more precarious and reducing their political power. Central to the debate is the question of how the middle classes can rebalance the relationship between the Market and state intervention, so as to establish a new social equilibrium.

This book examines the ongoing transformation of public utilities, also known as network-based industries, in Western Europe and the United States. Examples are telecommunications, energy, and water distribution. Most of these network-based industries were until recently natural monopolies. Over the last two decades national governments have embarked upon privatization, deregulation and liberalization of their public utilities. The contributors in this volume examine the many related aspects, including: * key characteristics and regulation of network based industries * the emerging EU regulatory framework * corporate strategies, industry dynamics, and organizational performance * case studies from the telecommunications and water industries * engineering competition versus engineering regulation. This book provides a non-ideological and multidisciplinary overview of recent views and experiences with the liberalization, privatization and regulatory reform of public utilities in Europe and the United States. As such it will be of interest to scholars and researchers of institutional economics, and organizational studies, as well as regulators, policymakers and consultants involved in both studying and governing network-based industries.

Many countries have attempted to employ privatization programs to restructure their economies; however, some of the programs are rejected by the polity in the early stages of consideration. Research on privatization has mainly focused on programs that have been accepted, but it often ignores issues associated with rejection. Dr. Molano breaks new ground by examining the microeconomic, macroeconomic, and political factors that shape all outcomes of privatization. A case study method is employed to review attempts to privatize state-owned telephone companies in countries in the southern cone of Latin America. The study is further generalized to cover 23 attempts to privatize telephone companies from 1985 to 1995.

Clemens Schutte analyses the emergence of corporate control structures in the Czech privatization process. The book depicts the basic features of the Czech system of corporate control and the direction of its transformation. This is an extremely relevant subject since the Czech privatization process is a model case in several respects: it is institutionally open and hence allows for spontaneous development; and privatization has been carried out comprehensively and rapidly. Based upon a theoretical analysis of the institutional cornerstones of corporate control, the book develops clear recommendations which are subsequently used as a benchmark to assess the performance of the evolving Czech system of corporate control.The book discusses the role of the most important players in corporate control including the big bank-centred financial groups, capital markets, the board model of Czech corporations and the institutional base of debt control and minority shareholder protection. It also reveals the conflict of political intentions and real-time developments. As an important and timely contribution, this book will be invaluable reading for all those involved, or interested, in the privatization and corporate control of other Central and Eastern European countries. Those working in financial and political institutions will also find this book valuable.

This book provides a comparative study of the telecommunication reform process in three Central American countries - Costa Rica, Guatemala and Honduras - focusing on the roles of the local private sector and international financial institutions. By addressing the following questions, the book aims to understand the potential for the emergence of an autonomous and inclusive regulatory state: * What has been the main driving force behind the wave of privatizations in Latin America? * What has been the role of the international financial institutions (IFIs)? * What kind of state emerges after privatization and regulatory reform? * Why does privatization remain so unpopular? The author discusses the historical role of telecommunications in state power, the sources of proposed, failed and implemented reforms, and the political processes determining their destiny. Benedicte Bull concludes that the reform processes in the three countries show significant variation. This is accounted for - not by the different relationship to the IFIs, but by the different relationships between the state and the private sector. The impact of this on the reform process is also the key to understanding the state's capacity for post-reform regulation and the unpopularity of privatization. Academics and students with an interest in Latin American studies, international political economy, comparative politics and development studies will find this book of great appeal.

Privatization, with its ultimate objective of raising economic efficiency, has been central to the transformation of the economies of Eastern Europe and Russia. The perception of foreign direct investment in the privatization process of transitional economies is often shrouded in emotional prejudice and daily political needs and remote from rational economic considerations. Eastern Europe is no exception to this trend. This study identifies the presence of multinationals and their role in privatization in Eastern Europe. It binds together the current theoretical knowledge of foreign capital and privatization in transition economies with a close examination of the privatization policies and strategies in the Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland, Slovenia, Estonia and Russia.

Private Enterprise-Led Development in Sub-Saharan Africa provides a novel theoretical and conceptual model to guide research into Africa's economic development. It endorses the view that private enterprise-led growth will help reduce poverty since it strengthens individuals' capacity to care for themselves and their families.

A fundamental characteristic of the global economy during the 1990s is the reinvigoration of the private sector as the driving force for economic growth and social progress. This book surveys Central Europe during the early period of transition from late 1989 to early 1993, when governments were experimenting with privatization and economic reform, and assesses how privatization and economic reform policies have changed the business climate there. Rondinelli and his contributors provide an overview of economic reforms in Central European countries, offer a framework by which to compare them, describe the approaches to privatization their governments adopted, and identify the problems and challenges that each country faces in attempting to create a market-oriented economy. The result is a valuable resource for international management, international trade policy makers, and scholars of international business.

The process of economic restructuring is especially important and particularly complex in Central Europe, where Poland, Hungary, the Czech and Slovak Republics, Slovenia, and other independent states of former Yugoslavia are struggling to transform themselves from socialist to market economies. Each country faces equally complex challenges, however, in creating a new business climate that will nourish domestic enterprise and attract investments by multinational corporations. These challenges include: (1) privatizing state-owned enterprises that have dominated the economies of socialist countries; (2) developing public policies and programs that support the private sector, especially small- and medium-scale enterprises; (3) decentralizing the state administrative structure to allow regional and local governments to play a more active role in providing public services and supporting private enterprise; and (4) restructuring industry, agriculture, and services in order to diversify and reinvigorate the economic base (including infrastructure) of regions surrounding cities that are still dominated by heavy (and now largely obsolescent) manufacturing industries.

This book surveys the situation in Central Europe during the early period of transition in the early 1990s when governments in all four countries were experimenting with privatization and economic reform. The authors assess how privatization and economic reform policies have changed the business climate in this important region of the world. The editor provides an overview of economic reforms in Central European countries, offers a framework by which to compare them, describes the approaches to privatization their governments adopted, and identifies the problems and challenges that each country faces in attempting to create a market-oriented economy.

Work Identity at the End of the Line? tells the story of workplace culture and identity in the railway industry before during and after privatization in the mid 1990s. It combines rich interview material from workers and managers involved in the privatisation process with a fascinating background detail of nationalization. The book will be of interest to sociologists, cultural and economic historians as well as those studying culture change in business. MARKET 1: Academics, Researchers and Libraries in Universities and Business and Management Schools, especially in courses on public sector management, and the management of change; Policy makers in the public sector and those interested in privatization