The Impact of Information and Communications Technologies (ICTs) on Firm Location

Thesis (Ph.D.) - Indiana University, Geography, 2010Recent innovations in information and communications technologies (ICTs), particularly those related to the Internet, have fundamentally changed the environment in which businesses and regions compete around the globe. Despite widespread recognition of this change, several aspects of the manner in which ICTs have impacted business location and regional development remain unexplored. The papers that comprise this dissertation seek to provide some initial quantitative insights about ICTs, firm location, and regional development, to a literature that remains largely theoretical and speculative. The first paper explores the utility of short and mid-range broadband forecasts as potential tools for local economic development officials to flag problematic areas where broadband provision via traditional market mechanisms is doubtful. The piece finds short and mid-range spatial forecasts of broadband provision offer improved results over aspatial forecasts, which is especially important for ICT studies, given the historical lack of available data for use in empirical work. Forecasts can also be used by economic development officials to craft proactive rather than reactive intervention strategies to rollout broadband in unserved areas. The second paper examines similarities in the spatial distribution of broadband provision and firms in a variety of industries. Results indicate the relationship between the location of broadband and the location of firms varies by firm size and industry. This suggests firm size and industry membership are critical considerations when evaluating the impact of ICTs on firm location decisions. The third and final paper examines the challenges associated with benchmarking regional development given the pervasive and related technological and industrial changes in the U.S over the past thirty years. Findings suggest multivariate approaches for benchmarking regional development are preferred over univariate approaches given the demonstrated divergence in univariate indicators in recent years. In sum, these three studies provide important information regarding the measurement of regional competitiveness in the global information economy, as well as information about the spatial relationship between firm location and broadband provision; which is likely to be a critical locational consideration for firm in specific sectors of the U.S economy

Hidden in Plain Sight: A Machine Learning Approach for Detecting Prostitution Activity in Phoenix, Arizona

Prostitution has been a topic of study for decades, yet many questions remain about where prostitution occurs. Difficulty in identifying prostitution activity is often attributed to the hidden and seemingly victimless nature of the crime. Despite numerous challenges associated with policing street prostitution, these encounters become more difficult to identify when they take place indoors, especially in locations away from public view, such as hotels. The purpose of this paper is to develop a strategy for identifying hotel facilities and surrounding areas that may be experiencing elevated levels of prostitution activity using high-volume, user-generated data, namely hotel reviews written by guests and posted to Travelocity.com. A unique synthesis of methods including data mining, natural language processing, machine learning, and basic spatial analysis are combined to identify facilities that may require additional law enforcement resources and/or social/health service outreach. Prostitution hotspots are identified within the city of Phoenix, Arizona and policy implications are discussed

Una propuesta metodológica para la definición de mercados geográficos relevantes

El punto de partida de cualquier análisis de competencia, consiste en la definición adecuada del mercado tanto en términos de producto como en términos geográficos. Sin embargo, la definición de los límites no siempre resulta sencilla, en particular cuando se refiere a términos espaciales. No obstante, la definición de esos límites del mercado es definitiva para prever la incidencia de cualquier actividad u operación sobre el grado de competencia de un mercado. Por esta razón, el presente documento busca proponer una metodología alterna de definición de mercados geográficos relevantes, retomando el índice Moran y el modelo de rezago espacial (SAR en inglés). The starting point of every competition analysis consists of the appropriate market definition in terms of product as well as in geographic form. However, the definition of boundaries is not always easy, particularly when it refers to spatial limits. Nonetheless, the definition of those market boundaries is definitive to foresee the effects of some activity or operation (as enterprises merger) on the degree of competition in the market. Hence, the present document proposes an alternative methodology to define relevant geographic markets, using Moran’s Test and Spatial Lag Model (SAR)

Una propuesta metodológica para la definición de mercados geográficos relevantes

El punto de partida de cualquier análisis de competencia, consiste en la definición adecuada del mercado tanto en términos de producto como en términos geográficos. Sin embargo, la definición de los límites no siempre resulta sencilla, en particular cuando se refiere a términos espaciales. No obstante, la definición de esos límites del mercado es definitiva para prever la incidencia de cualquier actividad u operación sobre el grado de competencia de un mercado. Por esta razón, el presente documento busca proponer una metodología alterna de definición de mercados geográficos relevantes, retomando el índice Moran y el modelo de rezago espacial (SAR en inglés). The starting point of every competition analysis consists of the appropriate market definition in terms of product as well as in geographic form. However, the definition of boundaries is not always easy, particularly when it refers to spatial limits. Nonetheless, the definition of those market boundaries is definitive to foresee the effects of some activity or operation (as enterprises merger) on the degree of competition in the market. Hence, the present document proposes an alternative methodology to define relevant geographic markets, using Moran’s Test and Spatial Lag Model (SAR)

The regional consequences of new digital infrastructure: can Welsh SMEs gain an edge from access and adoption of superfast broadband?

Across the United Kingdom public (and private) resources have been targeted on improving broadband infrastructure. While this has served to provide new opportunities for households and firms, there has been some debate around the ability of firms to take full advantage of the opportunities that arise through this evolving infrastructure. In this respect, there has been particular debate on how far small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) have taken up the challenge of effectively engaging with the resource. Drawing on the case of Wales, this paper explores the digital maturity of a sample of Welsh SMEs. The paper provides evidence of how far SMEs are successfully engaging with the new opportunities available through broadband, and develops a typology of firms according to their engagement. The paper then explores how these differences produce policy implications

Επίδραση του οικονομικού και κοινωνικού περιβάλλοντος στη διάχυση των τεχνολογιών πληροφορικής και επικοινωνιών

Στην παρούσα διδακτορική διατριβή, μελετάται η επίδραση του οικονομικού και κοινωνικού περιβάλλοντος στη διάχυση των τεχνολογιών πληροφορικής και επικοινωνιών (ΤΠΕ). Αρχικά, παρουσιάζεται ένα θεωρητικό πλαίσιο για την ανάπτυξη επιχειρηματικών σχεδίων εκμετάλλευσης οπτικών δικτύων, μαζί με μία ανάλυση πληθυσμιακών περιορισμών που αναφέρεται στην Ελλάδα. Στη συνέχεια εξετάζεται η πορεία της διείσδυσης των ευρυζωνικών υπηρεσιών σε Ευρωπαϊκές χώρες και για το λίγο αυτό αναπτύσσεται ένα μέτρο προσέγγισης της διαδικασίας σύγκλισης των χωρών που συμμετέχουν στην ανάλυση. Μέσα από μία μη-παραμετρική ανάλυση μεταξύ ευρυζωνικής διείσδυσης και κοινωνικο-οικονομικών παραμέτρων προκύπτει ότι η επίδραση των παραμέτρων εξαρτάται από το επίπεδο της ευρυζωνικότητας. Επιπλέον, εισάγεται μία νέα μετρική, η «αξιοποίηση του δυναμικού των δικτύων επικοινωνιών», συναρτήσει δημόσιων πρακτικών για την ενίσχυση των νέων τεχνολογιών και εκτιμάται η επίδραση της μετρικής αυτής σε μία σειρά κοινωνικό-οικονομικών παραμέτρων. Ακολούθως, αναπτύσσεται ένας νέος δείκτης, ο βαθμός της ωριμότητας των τεχνολογιών πληροφορικής και επικοινωνιών. Μέσα από τον υπολογισμό του δείκτη προκύπτει μία κατάταξη για τις αναπτυγμένες και αναπτυσσόμενες χώρες, αναδεικνύοντας τις βέλτιστες πρακτικές. Τέλος, πραγματοποιείται μία αιτιακή ανάλυση μεταξύ του οικονομικού επιπέδου και του επιπέδου διείσδυσης της ευρυζωνικότητας σε ένα μεγάλο αριθμό χωρώνIn this PhD thesis, the impact of economic and social environment on the diffusion of Information and Communications Technologies (ICTs) is studied. Initially, a theoretical framework for developing business plans operating optical networks is developed, along with an analysis of population restrictions regarding Greece. Then broadband diffusion process in Europe is examined and suggested an approach to measure the digital convergence of countries participating in the analysis. Through a non-parametric analysis between broadband penetration and socio-economic parameters, it is shown that the impact of the influential parameters depends on the level of broadband penetration. Furthermore, a new metric, the “Utilization of Communications Network Potential” (UCNP) versus public practices aimed at enhancing new technologies is proposed. The impact of UCNP is examined in a series of socio-economic parameters. Next, a new index is introduced i.e. the “Maturity Level of ICT” (IMLI). The calculation of this index allows the ranking of countries on the basis of their economic status, highlighting best practices. Finally, a causal analysis between the economic status and the level of broadband penetration is performed in many countries

Forecasting broadband provision

The provision of broadband telecommunication services in the United States is spatially heterogeneous. Previous studies find that urban locales typically have a larger selection of access platforms and providers when compared to rural or remote areas. Therefore, the ability to forecast broadband provision is important to understanding regional trends in telecommunications competition and availability. This paper provides a comparative analysis of cross-sectional and spatial econometric forecasts of broadband provision, with results suggesting that the integration of spatially referenced demand-side variables significantly improve the accuracy of short and mid-range forecasts.Broadband Forecasting Spatial analysis Regional development Equity