The benefits and potential costs of a digital economy

Lawrence J. Lau

Telecommunications Policy, 2023, vol. 47, issue 8

Abstract: Computerisation, or more generally, digitisation, of an economy has brought about substantial benefits. It has greatly increased productivity. It has significantly advanced both the pace and the scope of economic globalisation and international division of labour. However, digitisation can also enable, through the collection and assembly of individual-consumer-specific information, price discrimination by a seller of a product, which results in the consumer surplus of the buyer being appropriated. Moreover, the widespread use of email and other message application platforms operated by profit-making private enterprises also facilitates the collection and assembly of vast amounts of individual-consumer-specific private information without the explicit and specific consent of the individual consumer, information which can be used to his or her detriment. Possible remedial measures are proposed.

Keywords: Digital economy; Benefits; Costs (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2023
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (4)

Downloads: (external link)
http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0308596123001052
Full text for ScienceDirect subscribers only

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:eee:telpol:v:47:y:2023:i:8:s0308596123001052

Ordering information: This journal article can be ordered from
http://www.elsevier.com/wps/find/journaldescription.cws_home/30471/bibliographic
http://www.elsevier. ... /30471/bibliographic

DOI: 10.1016/j.telpol.2023.102594

Access Statistics for this article

Telecommunications Policy is currently edited by Erik Bohlin

More articles in Telecommunications Policy from Elsevier
Bibliographic data for series maintained by Catherine Liu ().