The Economist magazine introduced the term “privatization” in the 1930s in its coverage of Nazi German economic policy.
Voucher privatization has mainly occurred in the transition economies of Central and Eastern Europe, such as Russia, Poland, the Czech Republic, and Slovakia. Additionally, Privatization from below is/has been an important type of economic growth in transition economies.
Privatization (also spelled privatisation) is the incidence or process of transferring ownership of a business, enterprise, agency, public service or property from the public sector (the state or government) to the private sector (businesses that operate for a private profit) or to private non-profit organizations.
The term “privatization” also has been used to describe two unrelated transactions. The first is a buyout, by the majority owner, of all shares of a public corporation or holding company‘s stock, privatizing a publicly traded stock, and often described as private equity. The second is a demutualization of a mutual organization or cooperative to form a joint stock company.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Privatization
http://www.imf.org/external/pubs/ft/issues/issues18/index.htm
http://www.nytimes.com/2012/06/22/opinion/krugman-prisons-privatization-patronage.html
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052702303734204577468513760329818.html?mod=googlenews_wsj
http://www.downsizinggovernment.org/privatization
http://cup.columbia.edu/book/978-0-231-14160-4/privatization