Abstract
Stimulating broadband diffusion seems to be a significant national agenda in both developed and developing countries. Regulation that contributes to creating an investment-friendly environment has long been adopted by policymakers and has captured much attention among academic researchers as well. In recent years, governments have been strongly in favor of direct public intervention to stimulate broadband deployment and adoption. However, only a handful of research studies have explicitly analyzed the ex-post effectiveness of those policies for broadband promotion. This is owing to several reasons, including the difficulty of gathering adequate information for a number of countries. This paper examines the working and performance of public policies on the supply and demand sides. Empirical analysis suggests that demand side policies have a significantly positive impact on broadband penetration.
