Chapter 1. Convergence and the Information Economy
In this chapter…
The development of the Internet-based global telecommunications infrastructure is converging with that of local networks. The distribution and exchange of products and services, a kind of digital commodity, will soon exist in a frictionless, bidirectional, instantaneous environment. This revolution has the potential to redefine the fundamental basis of the world economy.
This opening chapter[1] is a serious attempt to fast-forward five or ten years and model the digital information and communications marketplace. Sections of this chapter examine the possibilities for a technological platform that will interconnect homes, and all the devices in them, into a cohesive system—one that empowers people to work, live, and communicate more effectively. We'll look at underlying social, cultural, and economic forces that act on the marketplace. It's a story about technological convergence, infrastructure development, and marketplace demand that will create a platform for the digital content, devices, and services of the information economy.
[1] This chapter is abstracted from a report developed by Enikia titled "The Information Economy Derivative Markets Model: A Technology Value Chain for the Digital Economy," December, 1999.