Conference Agenda
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Friday Panel 3: Whither Telecommunications Policy? Future Directions for a Maturing Research Field
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Whither Telecommunications Policy? Future Directions for a Maturing Research Field 1: Ivey Business School, Journal of Telecommunications Policy; 2: Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, Journal of Information Policy; 3: Northumbria University, Journal of Telecommunications Policy; 4: Pontificia Universidad Católica del Perú (PUCP); 5: Quello Center, Michigan State University; 6: University of North Texas; 7: Public Utility Research Center (PURC), University of Florida; 8: Shanghai University; 9: Michigan State University; 10: York University; 11: Weizenbaum Institut Berlin With the TPRC (originally Telecommunications Policy Research Conference) founded more than 50 years ago, and the first issue of the journal of Telecommunications Policy in 1976, telecommunications policy is a maturing scientific field. This maturation is visible also in the typical participants not only of TPRC but also in complementary conference forum such as International Telecommunications Society (ITS), Pacific Telecom Conference and International Institute of Communications. From the perspective of Telecommunications Policy, submissions have increased significantly in recent years, increasing from 401 in 2020 to 1772 in 2025. Over 2000 submissions are expected in 2026. The journal is also doing well when it comes to bibliometrics, going up from an impact factor of 0.4 in 2005, to 6.4 in 2025, and on being high ranking in fields such as communication and economics. However, a high submission number does not necessarily mean high quality. Rather, the submission increase is largely based on quantitative and marginal contributions, and with relatively little novelty. In the meantime, journal outlets have grown, with Journal of Information Policy and Digital Policy, Regulation and Governance (formerly Info) to name a few being launched. In addition, new, often broadly based conferences, have emerged that attract large numbers of participants , while policy themes can often be found within established engineering or computing conferences. And there are more places to publish research, ranging from established journals that have broadened their remit to include policy issues to new journals, archival services (e.g., SSRN), blogs etc. The closure of Communications & Strategies published by IDATE hints at the challenges associated with operating a journal with a relatively narrow remit in an increasingly crowded and competitive field. These trends raise several issues that will be explored in the panel:
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