The Economic Impact of Broadband Speed versus Penetration

External PersonnelGary Madden, Walter J. Mayer
Research PartnersUniversity of Mississippi
Project StatusComplete

Project Summary

Improved access to broadband internet networks provides new business opportunities, not marketable solutions. That is, co-investments by decentralised firms is needed (in particular, SMEs) to realize innovative opportunities. However, investments in complementary inputs such as personal computers, software and human capital will only be made when expected returns are large enough. While, macroeconomic research does demonstrate a strong positive long-run relationship between broadband and economic growth; no time-profile of returns is provided on which to base investment decisions. Further, the robustness of returns from improved broadband access needs to be conditioned on actual network speeds. This study addresses both concerns.