Marvin Sirbu

Courtesy Professor, Electrical and Computer Engineering
Professor, Engineering and Public Policy

Bio

Professor Sirbu coordinates a research program in telecommunications information technology, policy and management. The research is concerned with how public policies influence the deployment of new information technologies, and conversely, what public policies are required to accommodate new technological developments. For example, local exchange competition is being facilitated by new technologies for delivering integrated voice, data and video over fiber optic, coaxial cable, twisted pair, or wireless networks. Engineering economic models of alternative local telecommunication network architectures are used to examine issues of comparative economics, economies of scale and scope, and impact of regulatory policies governing competitive entry, unbundling, and interconnection.

The rise of integrated gigabit networks requires new approaches to the regulation and pricing of telecommunications services. Old regulatory models which treat telephony, packet switching and cable services differently for regulatory purposes must be revised when all information types are reduced to data bits. We are exploring the regulatory implications of Next Generation Network (NGN) technologies (e.g. packet-switched over fiber) and the implications of integrated networks for regulatory policy. Pricing of integrated networks is explored through formal and empirical models of network supply and demand that can lead to efficient and practical pricing structures for both unicast and multicast traffic.

Broadband networks are becoming more central to knowledge-based economies. We are exploring the impact on economic growth of the availability and use of broadband by combining broadband deployment data with economic census data. We are also concerned with how to revise universal service support mechanisms for wireless and NGNs.

Education

DSc, 1973 
Electrical Engineering 
Massachusetts Institute of Technology

MS, 1968 
Electrical Engineering 
Massachusetts Institute of Technology

BS, 1967 
Mathematics 
Massachusetts Institute of Technology

BS, 1966 
Electrical Engineering 
Massachusetts Institute of Technology