Broadband Infrastructure and Economic Growth

2011/05/01 by Nina Czernich, Oliver Falck, Tobias Kretschmer +1 · 1,330 citations
Economics, Econometrics and Finance · Engineering · #Broadband #Business #Computer science #Economic Growth and Productivity #Economics #Fiscal Policy and Economic Growth #ICT Impact and Policies #Natural resource economics #Telecommunications

paper · doi:10.1111/j.1468-0297.2011.02420.x

published in The Economic Journal 121(552), 505-532 (Oxford University Press)

openalex publication_date 2011/05/01 · openalex created_date 2025/10/10 · openalex updated_date 2026/08/05

Abstract

We estimate the effect of broadband infrastructure, which enables high-speed internet, on economic growth in the panel of OECD countries in 1996-2007. Our instrumental-variable model derives its non-linear first stage from a logistic diffusion model where pre-existing voice-telephony and cable-TV networks predict maximum broadband penetration. We find that a 10 percentage-point increase in broadband penetration raises annual per-capita growth by 0.9-1.5 percentage points. Results are robust to country and year fixed effects and controlling for linear second-stage effects of our instruments. We verify that our instruments predict broadband penetration but not diffusion of contemporaneous technologies like mobile telephony and computers.

Cited by

• RETRACTED ARTICLE: Beyond GDP: national intelligence quotient as a catalyst for sustainable socioeconomic welfare
• Does network infrastructure construction reduce energy intensity? Based on the “Broadband China” strategy
• The Skill Complementarity of Broadband Internet *
• Broadband Internet and social capital
• How does internet development affect energy-saving and emission reduction? Evidence from China
• A Retrospective Study of State aid Control in the German Broadband Market
• Does access to internet promote innovation? A look at the U.S. broadband industry
• Assessing the potential of ICT to increase land and labour productivity in agriculture: Global and regional perspectives
• The European digital single market strategy: Local indicators of spatial association 2011–2016
• When Broadband Comes to Banks: Credit Supply, Market Structure, and Information Acquisition
• The Internet and income inequality: Socio-economic challenges in a hyperconnected society
• Economic growth and broadband access: The European urban-rural digital divide
• Is ICT an enduring driver of economic growth? Evidence from South Asian economies
• Internet use, gender role attitudes, and female labor market outcomes in rural China
• The Digital Economy and Variegated Capitalism
• Does state aid for broadband deployment in rural areas close the digital and economic divide?
• ICT and productivity: conclusions from the empirical literature
• Impact of broadband access on local population and employment: Evidence from Spain
• The Impact of Shared Telecom Infrastructure on Digital Connectivity and Inclusion
• Evaluating the impact of next generation broadband on local business creation
• Towards green trade: Digital economy and export quality of green products
• Regulation and Investment in Next Generation Access Networks:Recent Evidence from the European Member States
• Digital infrastructure and employment in services: Evidence from Sub-Saharan African countries
• Digitalization and economic growth in the MENA region: Evidence from panel data analysis
• Digitalization and energy: How does internet development affect China's energy consumption?
• Setting the Foundations for PoP-Based Internet Evolution Models
• A critical appraisal of the European Commission´s policy towards regulating next generation communications networks
• Broadband Networks in the Middle East and North Africa: Accelerating High-Speed Internet Access
• A Retrospective Look at the U.S. Productivity Growth Resurgence
• Isolating the effect of cycling on local business environments in London. [europepmc]
• The Impact of Internet Development on Urban Eco-Efficiency-A Quasi-Natural Experiment of "Broadband China" Pilot Policy. [europepmc]
• How to Improve the Cognitive Health of Middle-Aged and Elderly People: Evidence From China Family Panel Studies. [europepmc]
• The Effects of Broadband Infrastructure on Carbon Emission Efficiency of Resource-Based Cities in China: A Quasi-Natural Experiment from the "Broadband China" Pilot Policy. [europepmc]
• How does new infrastructure impact the competitiveness of the tourism industry?--Evidence from China. [europepmc]
• Information and Communication Technology (ICT) and youth unemployment in Africa. [europepmc]
• The impact of broadband speed on innovation: City-level evidence from China. [europepmc]
• Can Internet Construction Promote Urban Green Development? A Quasi-Natural Experiment from the "Broadband China". [europepmc]
• Cyber-infrastructure and epidemic precautionary policy: evidence from China. [europepmc]
• Investigating the effects of ICT, education, and R&D on economic efficiency and technology heterogeneity: A cross-country analysis. [europepmc]
• The concept, technical architecture, applications and impacts of satellite internet: A systematic literature review. [europepmc]
• Digital literacy: The catalyst for credit access and income growth in rural households. [europepmc]
• Digital economy and the domestic supply chain network [europepmc]
• Exploring the Determinants of Internet Usage in Nigeria: A Micro-spatial Approach [europepmc]
• ICT, trade openness and economic growth in Tunisia: what is going wrong? [europepmc]
• Digital Capacity and Employment Outcomes: Microdata Evidence from Pre- and Post-COVID-19 Europe [europepmc]

Related

• Economic growth and broadband access: The European urban-rural digital divide
• The contribution of US broadband infrastructure subsidy and investment programs to GDP using input-output modeling
• Growth in the "New Economy": U.S. Bandwidth Use and Pricing Across the 1990s
• Impact of broadband access on local population and employment: Evidence from Spain
• Evaluating the impact of next generation broadband on local business creation