Regulatory issues in telecommunications and ICT-based dynamics in open economies: introduction

Abstract

The expansion of information and communication technology (ICT) is a key element of growth, innovation and structural change in OECD countries and worldwide. In the new digital world economy telecommunications, internet services and computers are interacting on the one hand and on the other hand affecting productivity growth and market dynamics in every non-ICT sector. This special issue which is based on a project funded by the European Commission (grant 200557-LLP-1-2011-1-DE-AJM-IC) and presents important new findings on several theoretical, empirical and policy aspects of the digital economy: Paul Welfens and Jens Perret present first estimates on the true ratio of real investment to real GDP, namely by explicitly taking into account the fall of ICT capital investment goods prices: nominal investment-GDP ratios clearly underestimate investment. Moreover, they present a first estimate of private households’ value-added through the internet in selected OECD countries—based on the time budget of households and certain assumptions about households’ activities as both consumers and “prosumers” (digital producers) in the internet. William Dutton and Grant Blank present survey data on the next generations of internet users. This contribution is anchored in longitudinal survey data on how Britons Int Econ Econ Policy (2014) 11:1–3 DOI 10.1007/s10368-013-0265-4