The Internet as a General-Purpose Technology : Firm-Level Evidence from Around the World
This paper uses firm-level data to assess whether telecommunication services are general-purpose technologies (technologies that benefit a large segment of the economy and have long-lasting effect). It finds that only Internet services are so: firm...
| Main Authors: | , , |
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| Format: | Publications & Research |
| Language: | English en_US |
| Published: |
World Bank Group, Washington, DC
2015
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| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | http://documents.worldbank.org/curated/en/2015/02/23981049/internet-general-purpose-technology-firm-level-evidence-around-world http://hdl.handle.net/10986/21449 |
| Summary: | This paper uses firm-level data to
assess whether telecommunication services are
general-purpose technologies (technologies that benefit a
large segment of the economy and have long-lasting effect).
It finds that only Internet services are so: firm growth and
productivity are much higher when Internet access is greater
and when firms use the Internet more intensively; and
Internet access benefits firms in high- and low-tech
industries, firms of all sizes, and exporter and
non-exporter firms. Small firms appear to benefit more from
the Internet than large firms do. In contrast, fixed-line
and cellular services are not robustly linked to firm performance. |
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