The relentless transformation of the telecommunication marketplace has shown no signs of slowing in the past 12 months. At the beginning of the twenty-first century, the global telecommunication industry is being reshaped by fundamental changes in ownership, market structure, regulatory practice and technological advancement. After the decade of the 1990s – a period of tremendous flux and dynamism – the coming decade will bring its own challenges, including the need to harness this burgeoning growth and progress to serve the needs of all existing and potential end users.