As is apparent to anyone who owns a computer in Japan, the government's stated aim of making the nation an IT powerhouse will come to nothing until telecommunications connection fees become more rational.

We have been told that deregulation is the answer, but history has shown that privatizing public utilities doesn't guarantee what's best for the citizens. The main obstacle to greater Internet usage in Japan is NTT, which acts completely like a profit-making monopoly and not at all like a utility that is supposed to serve the public. The Japanese government would like us to think that NTT's stranglehold on telephone services will soon be gone, but actually it will only be loosened slightly.

Starting May 1, consumers will be able to choose from among more than a dozen private companies for any combination of the four connection services used in Japan: local, semilocal (outside your city but within your prefecture), long distance and international. This choice has been available for long-distance and international calls ever since NTT was privatized in 1985, but when consumers want to utilize other carriers they have to dial a special prefix. In May, prefixes will no longer be needed because you will be hooked up directly to the carrier of your choice.