Transaction Costs, Information Technology and Development

Nirvikar Singh

Santa Cruz Center for International Economics, Working Paper Series from Center for International Economics, UC Santa Cruz

Abstract: This paper explores potential channels through which information technology (IT) affects economic development. The channel emphasized here is the reduction of transaction costs through the use of information technology. We discuss the nature of transaction costs, their possible impacts on economic outcomes, and the impacts of IT on transaction costs. We provide a theoretical discussion of how a reduction in transaction costs may affect the number of intermediate goods that are produced, and in turn how that number may affect the development path of the economy. We then draw on our fieldwork in rural India that examined the economics of rural Internet kiosks, and relate this multifaceted case study to the theoretical discussion of transaction costs. We conclude with a broader discussion of the potential impact of IT on developing economies.

Keywords: transaction costs; information technology; Internet; development; India (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2004-10-01
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (2)

Downloads: (external link)
https://www.escholarship.org/uc/item/3wq7n6nq.pdf;origin=repeccitec (application/pdf)

Related works:
Journal Article: Transaction costs, information technology and development (2008)
Working Paper: Transaction Costs, Information Technology and Development (2008)
Working Paper: Transaction Costs, Information Technology and Development (2004)
Working Paper: Transaction Costs, Information Technology and Development (2004)
Working Paper: Transaction Costs, Information Technology and Development (2004)
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:cdl:scciec:qt3wq7n6nq

Access Statistics for this paper

More papers in Santa Cruz Center for International Economics, Working Paper Series from Center for International Economics, UC Santa Cruz Contact information at EDIRC.
Bibliographic data for series maintained by Lisa Schiff ().