Current Issues in Public Utilities and Public Policy Empirical Studies Focusing on Japan - Original PDF
نویسندگان: Fumitoshi Mizutani · Takuya Urakami · Eri Nakamura
خلاصه: Public utility industries are basic to both consumers and firms for main- taining daily life and economic activities. Relevant, practical information based on careful empirical study is necessary to create prudent policy for public utility indus- tries. This chapter summarizes three points: the aim of this book, the characteristics of public industries, and the topic of each chapter. The purpose here is to deepen the general understanding of public utility industries, which, compared with general industries, have distinguishing characteristics such as (i) the necessity for huge infras- tructure networks, (ii) the provision of essential services, (iii) the difficulty of storing services and a peak/off-peak imbalance, (iv) the necessity for a balance of publicness and marketability, (v) the existence of externalities, and (vi) the constraints imposed by public regulation