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Measuring the Other Half: New Measures of Intangible Investment from the ONS

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  • Martin, Josh

Abstract

Only half of investment by firms is in physical capital, such as buildings and machinery. The other half is in intangible assets, such as branding, software and training. This has been true for the past two decades or more in the UK, but only if you step beyond the measures in the National Accounts, which include only some of the recognised intangible assets. This paper surveys ongoing work at the Office for National Statistics to develop measures of investment in intangible assets, using new insights and innovative approaches. In particular, this paper reviews developments in three areas: in-house branding investments, employer-funded training investments, and in-house investments in organisational capital. We reconsider some of the key assumptions made in the literature and propose alternative approaches to measurement. The paper concludes by considering implications of this work, and identifies some of the remaining gaps in the evidence base for measuring intangible assets.

Suggested Citation

  • Martin, Josh, 2019. "Measuring the Other Half: New Measures of Intangible Investment from the ONS," National Institute Economic Review, National Institute of Economic and Social Research, vol. 249, pages 17-29, August.
    • Handle: RePEc:cup:nierev:v:249:y:2019:i::p:r17-r29_11
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    Cited by:

    1. Peter Goodridge & Jonathan Haskel, 2023. "Accounting for the slowdown in UK innovation and productivity," Economica, London School of Economics and Political Science, vol. 90(359), pages 780-812, July.
    2. Josh Martin & Cain Baybutt, 2022. "The 'F Words': Why Surveying Businesses About Intangibles is so Hard," Economic Statistics Centre of Excellence (ESCoE) Discussion Papers ESCoE DP-2022-20, Economic Statistics Centre of Excellence (ESCoE).
    3. Anna Ardanaz-Badia & Josh Martin & Mika Morgan & Jakob Scheebacher, 2022. "Channels of Managerial Capital Accumulation - A Framework and New Evidence from UK Microdata," Economic Statistics Centre of Excellence (ESCoE) Discussion Papers ESCoE DP-2022-15, Economic Statistics Centre of Excellence (ESCoE).
    4. King Carl Tornam Duho, 2022. "Intangibles, Intellectual Capital, and the Performance of Listed Non-Financial Services Firms in West Africa: A Cross-Country Analysis," Merits, MDPI, vol. 2(3), pages 1-25, June.
    5. Josh Martin, 2022. "Methodological Developments for the Estimation of Own-account Software Investment in the UK," Economic Statistics Centre of Excellence (ESCoE) Discussion Papers ESCoE DP-2022-25, Economic Statistics Centre of Excellence (ESCoE).
    6. Marie Bjørneby & Simen Markussen & Knut Røed, 2023. "An imperfect wealth tax and employment in closely held firms," Economica, London School of Economics and Political Science, vol. 90(358), pages 557-583, April.
    7. Josh Martin & Rebecca Riley, 2023. "Productivity measurement - Reassessing the production function from micro to macro," Working Papers 033, The Productivity Institute.
    8. Kristof Van Criekingen & Carter Bloch & Carita Eklund, 2022. "Measuring intangible assets—A review of the state of the art," Journal of Economic Surveys, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 36(5), pages 1539-1558, December.

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