11.   Suddenly, dramatically, things have begun to improve, as European Union deregulation has forced open the tight fists of the old national monopoly carriers on the Continent.

12.   The European telecommunications market is to be largely deregulated next year, creating new competition in countries that have been the domain of national monopolies.

13.   He also maintains that France Telecom and Deutsche Telekom currently enjoy national monopolies on the equipment needed to enter the data transmission market.

14.   Hence, it was natural for him to farm out lucrative contracts and national monopolies to his pampered children.

15.   In many countries, the industry has been dominated by national monopolies which kept the cost of calls and other communications artificially high.

16.   The United States is insisting on an open business environment while the EU is still a telecommunications market largely in the hands of national monopolies.

17.   Van Miert said competition would be further distorted by the fact that Deutsche Telekom and France Telecom already have national monopolies on providing network infrastructure.

18.   But countries including Spain, Portugal, Belgium and Italy are fiercely determined to protect their national monopolies.

19.   This is a radical departure from practice in Europe where the gas market is dominated by cossetted national monopolies.

20.   It said the ultimate goal of the team was to establish a national monopoly company for cocoon production, silk processing and exports.