The Impact of Fixed and Mobile Broadband Adoption on Economic Growth A Panel Data Analysis
Main Article Content
Keywords
Broadband, Economic Growth, Fixed, Wireless
Abstract
This study analyses the impact of fixed and mobile broadband take-up on economic output for 34 OECD and G20 countries over the period 2008 to 2022. The results suggest that for the period both fixed and mobile broadband made positive contributions to a nation’s GDP per persons employed, with mobile broadband having the larger impact. The results also suggest that during the pandemic period (2020–2022) both fixed and mobile broadband were positively associated with GDP output. That said, many countries in the sample experienced notable declines in the take-up of mobile broadband during the pandemic period, resulting in a drag on GDP. This was offset, however, by increased take-up of fixed-line broadband services, which resulted in higher levels of economic output.
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References
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Koutroumpis, P. (2009). The economic impact of broadband on growth: A simultaneous approach. Telecommunications Policy, 33(9), 471–485. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.telpol.2009.07.004
Koutroumpis, P. (2019). The economic impact of broadband: Evidence from OECD countries. Technological Forecasting and Social Change, 148, 119719. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.techfore.2019.119719
Leo, J. G., & Clement, A. C. (2022). The effects of mobile broadband on economic growth in Nigeria. Journal of Economics and Allied Research, 7(4), 71–85. https://jearecons.com/index.php/jearecons/article/view/257
OECD. (2007). Broadband and the Economy. Paris. https://one.oecd.org/document/DSTI/ICCP/IE(2007)3/FINAL/en/pdf
Pollock, A. J. (2016). GDP per-worker vs. GDP per-capita. rstreet.org. https://www.rstreet.org/commentary/gdp-per-worker-vs-gdp-per-capita/
Qiang, C. Z.-W., & Rossotto, C. M., & Kimura, K. (2009). Economic Impacts of Broadband. In The World Bank, Information and Communications for Development 2009: Extending Reach and Increasing Impact. Washington D.C.: The World Bank. https://api.semanticscholar.org/CorpusID:14700576
Shapiro, P. D. (1976). Telecommunications and Industrial Development. IEEE Transactions on Communications, 24, 305–311. https://doi.org/10.1109/TCOM.1976.1093286
Shapiro, R. J., & Hassett, K. A. (2012). The Employment Effects of Advances in Internet and Wireless Technology: Evaluating the Transitions from 2G to 3G and from 3G to 4G. Washington D.C.: The New Policy Institute. https://www.sonecon.com/docs/studies/Wir
Waverman, L., Meschi, M., & Fuss, M. (2005). The impact of telecoms on economic growth in developing countries. The Vodafone Policy Paper Series, 2(03), 10–24. Available from https://www.assignmentpoint.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/04/L_Waverman_Telecoms_Growth_in_Dev_Countries.pdf
Wieck, R., & Vidal, M. (2011). Investment in telecommunications infrastructure, growth and employment – recent research. International Journal of Management and Network Economics (IJMNE), 2(2). https://doi.org/10.1504/IJMNE.2011.043351
World Economic Forum. (2022, January 23). These 5 charts reveal the global economic outlook for 2022. Retrieved from https://www.weforum.org/stories/2022/01/global-economic-outlook-5-charts-world-bank/
World Health Organization. (2023). WHO Director-General’s opening remarks at the media briefing – 5 May 2023. https://www.who.int/director-general/speeches/detail/who-director-general-s-opening-remarks-at-the-media-briefing---5-may-2023
Allen Consulting Group. (2002). Built for business II: Beyond basic connectivity, the Internet and Australian business. Sydney. https://webarchive.nla.gov.au/awa/20021221050701/http://www.allenconsult.com.au/publications_research.php
Atif, S. M., Macdonald, J., & Endres, J. (2012). Broadband infrastructure and economic growth: A panel data analysis of OECD countries. Sydney. https://ssrn.com/abstract=2166167
Australian Industry Group. (2008). National CEO Survey ─ High Speed to Broadband: Measuring industry demand for a world class service. https://webarchive.nla.gov.au/awa/20110303164403/http://pandora.nla.gov.au/pan/125552/20110304-0001/www.aigroup.com.au/portal/binary/com.epicentric.contentmanagement.servlet.ContentDeliveryServlet/LIVE_CONTENT/Publications/Reports/2008/7122_CEO_Broadband_web.pdf
Bai, Y. (2017). The faster, the better? The impact of internet speed on employment. Information Economics and Policy, 40, 21–25. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.infoecopol.2017.06.004
Briglauer, W., & Gugler, K. (2018). Go for gigabit? First evidence on economic benefits of (ultra-)fast broadband technologies in Europe. ZEW [Centre for European Economic Research], Discussion Paper No. 18-020. Available at https://www.econstor.eu/bitstream/10419/177828/1/1019312734.pdf
Briglauer, W., Durr, N., & Gugler, K. (2021). A retrospective study on the regional benefits and spillover effects of high-speed broadband networks: Evidence from German counties. International Journal of Industrial Organization, 74, 102677. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijindorg.2020.102677
Campbell, S., Ruiz Castro, J., & Wessel, D. (2021, August 18). The benefits and costs of broadband expansion. Brookings. https://www.brookings.edu/articles/the-benefits-and-costs-of-broadband-expansion/
Carew, D., Martin, N., Blumenthal, M., Armour, P., & Lastunen, J. (2018). The potential economic value of unlicensed spectrum in the 5.9 GHz frequency band: Insights for allocation policy. RAND Corporation. https://www.rand.org/pubs/research_reports/RR2
Collins, P., Day, D., & Williams, C. (2007). The economic effects of broadband: An Australian perspective. Canberra: Research Statistics and Technology Branch, Department of Communications, Information Technology and the Arts. Accessed 24 May 2010 from http://www.oecd.org/dataoecd/29/9/38698062.pdf
Crandall, R., Lehr, W., & Litan, R. (2007). The Effects of Broadband Deployment on Output and Employment, A Cross-sectional Analysis of U.S. Data. Issues in Economic Policy, 6. https://d1bcsfjk95uj19.cloudfront.net/files/Brookings-BroadbandDeployment.pdf
Czernich, N., Falck, O., Kretschmer, T., & Woessmann, L. (2011). Broadband Infrastructure and Economic Growth. The Economic Journal, 121(552), 505–532. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1468-0297.2011.02420.x
Deloitte. (2012). What is the impact of mobile telephony on economic growth? ictData.org. GSM Association. https://www.gsma.com/solutions-and-impact/connectivity-for-good/public-policy/wp-content/uploads/2012/11/gsma-deloitte-impact-mobile-telephony-econo
Deloitte. (2021). Broadband for all: charting a path to economic growth. https://www2.deloitte.com/content/dam/Deloitte/us/Documents/process-and-operations/us-charting-a-path-to-economic-growth.pdf
Eisenach, L., & Kulick, R. (2020). Economic impacts of mobile broadband innovation: Evidence from the Transition to 4G. American Enterprise Institute, Economics Working Paper 2020-05. http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.3607196
Grimes, A., Ren, C., & Stevens, P. (2009). The need for speed: impacts of internet. Motu Economic and Public Policy Research. https://motu-www.motu.org.nz/wpapers/09_15.pdf
Hardy, A. P. (1980). The role of the telephone in economic development. Telecommunications Policy, 4(4), 278–296. https://doi.org/10.1016/0308-5961(80)90044-0
Hasbi, M. (2022). Impact of very high-speed broadband on company creation and entrepreneurship: Empirical Evidence. Telecommunications Policy, 44(3), 101873. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.telpol.2019.101873
Katz, R., & Jung, J. (2022). The role of broadband infrastructure in building economic resiliency in the United States during the COVID-19 pandemic. Mathematics, 10(16), 2988. https://doi.org/10.3390/math10162988
Koutroumpis, P. (2009). The economic impact of broadband on growth: A simultaneous approach. Telecommunications Policy, 33(9), 471–485. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.telpol.2009.07.004
Koutroumpis, P. (2019). The economic impact of broadband: Evidence from OECD countries. Technological Forecasting and Social Change, 148, 119719. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.techfore.2019.119719
Leo, J. G., & Clement, A. C. (2022). The effects of mobile broadband on economic growth in Nigeria. Journal of Economics and Allied Research, 7(4), 71–85. https://jearecons.com/index.php/jearecons/article/view/257
OECD. (2007). Broadband and the Economy. Paris. https://one.oecd.org/document/DSTI/ICCP/IE(2007)3/FINAL/en/pdf
Pollock, A. J. (2016). GDP per-worker vs. GDP per-capita. rstreet.org. https://www.rstreet.org/commentary/gdp-per-worker-vs-gdp-per-capita/
Qiang, C. Z.-W., & Rossotto, C. M., & Kimura, K. (2009). Economic Impacts of Broadband. In The World Bank, Information and Communications for Development 2009: Extending Reach and Increasing Impact. Washington D.C.: The World Bank. https://api.semanticscholar.org/CorpusID:14700576
Shapiro, P. D. (1976). Telecommunications and Industrial Development. IEEE Transactions on Communications, 24, 305–311. https://doi.org/10.1109/TCOM.1976.1093286
Shapiro, R. J., & Hassett, K. A. (2012). The Employment Effects of Advances in Internet and Wireless Technology: Evaluating the Transitions from 2G to 3G and from 3G to 4G. Washington D.C.: The New Policy Institute. https://www.sonecon.com/docs/studies/Wir
Waverman, L., Meschi, M., & Fuss, M. (2005). The impact of telecoms on economic growth in developing countries. The Vodafone Policy Paper Series, 2(03), 10–24. Available from https://www.assignmentpoint.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/04/L_Waverman_Telecoms_Growth_in_Dev_Countries.pdf
Wieck, R., & Vidal, M. (2011). Investment in telecommunications infrastructure, growth and employment – recent research. International Journal of Management and Network Economics (IJMNE), 2(2). https://doi.org/10.1504/IJMNE.2011.043351
World Economic Forum. (2022, January 23). These 5 charts reveal the global economic outlook for 2022. Retrieved from https://www.weforum.org/stories/2022/01/global-economic-outlook-5-charts-world-bank/
World Health Organization. (2023). WHO Director-General’s opening remarks at the media briefing – 5 May 2023. https://www.who.int/director-general/speeches/detail/who-director-general-s-opening-remarks-at-the-media-briefing---5-may-2023
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Published
Dec 30, 2024
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How to Cite
Endres, J., & Steula, M. (2024). The Impact of Fixed and Mobile Broadband Adoption on Economic Growth : A Panel Data Analysis . Journal of Telecommunications and the Digital Economy, 12(4), 20–44. https://doi.org/10.18080/jtde.v12n4.1128
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