If the 1980's were the decade of privatization and deregulation, the 1990's should be the decade of regulation. Privatization itself led to the creation of new regulatory bodies, and the continuing merger boom. The rise of transnational corporations and the creation of the single European Market have also prompted regulatory activity. In this volume, industrial economists focus on the process by which governments in market economies deliberately take action to influence economic activity in firms and industries. It aims to provide teachers, students and researchers with a coherent framework for anaylzing regulation, and then explores key current issues, including the relationship between information and regulation, the regulation of monopolies and the role of regulation within the European Community. Regulation has conventionally been defended as a remedy for market failure or a curb to monopoly power. Whilst arguing that these remain important functions the book also stresses that regulation can be a positive instrument for promoting industrial development.