IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/gam/jsusta/v13y2021i19p11002-d649695.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

A Proposal for Assessing Digital Economy Spatial Readiness at Tourism Destinations

Author

Listed:
  • Vicente Ramos

    (SmartDestination Working Group, Applied Economics Department, University of the Balearic Islands, 07122 Palma de Mallorca, Spain)

  • Maurici Ruiz-Pérez

    (SmartDestination Working Group, Geography Department, University of the Balearic Islands, 07122 Palma de Mallorca, Spain)

  • Bartomeu Alorda

    (SmartDestination Working Group, Industrial Engineering and Construction Department, University of the Balearic Islands, 07122 Palma de Mallorca, Spain)

Abstract

Information and communications technologies (ICT)—and more precisely, their use from fulltime connected mobile gadgets—offer valuable opportunities to interact with tourists using their own devices. In order to exploit these benefits, destinations should have appropriate digital infrastructure to allow for bidirectional smart communication with their visitors. However, the spatial distribution of such coverage, and the geographical concurrence of tourism activities and ICT infrastructure, have been poorly examined. This paper contributes to this analysis by quantifying digital accessibility with both a broader regional approach and a narrower local perspective. First, we propose a digital immersion index, and apply it to the Balearic Islands, Spain. Second, alternative Moran’s indices are used to study the spatial distribution and correlation of tourism and technological infrastructure for a local destination. The results are presented through easily interpretable maps, which can inform tourism policies, such as identifying and prioritizing ITC investments.

Suggested Citation

  • Vicente Ramos & Maurici Ruiz-Pérez & Bartomeu Alorda, 2021. "A Proposal for Assessing Digital Economy Spatial Readiness at Tourism Destinations," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(19), pages 1-15, October.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:13:y:2021:i:19:p:11002-:d:649695
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/13/19/11002/pdf
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/13/19/11002/
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Meena Kumari Pradhan & Jungjoo Oh & Hwansoo Lee, 2018. "Understanding Travelers’ Behavior for Sustainable Smart Tourism: A Technology Readiness Perspective," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 10(11), pages 1-20, November.
    2. Ray F. Iunius & Laura Cismaru & Diana Foris, 2015. "Raising Competitiveness for Tourist Destinations through Information Technologies within the Newest Tourism Action Framework Proposed by the European Commission," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 7(9), pages 1-19, September.
    3. María Cristina Rodríguez Rangel & Marcelino Sánchez Rivero, 2020. "Spatial Imbalance Between Tourist Supply and Demand: The Identification of Spatial Clusters in Extremadura, Spain," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(4), pages 1-20, February.
    4. Lidija Lalicic & Irem Önder, 2018. "Residents’ Involvement in Urban Tourism Planning: Opportunities from a Smart City Perspective," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 10(6), pages 1-16, June.
    5. Jack E. Triplett, 1999. "The Solow productivity paradox: what do computers do to productivity?," Canadian Journal of Economics, Canadian Economics Association, vol. 32(2), pages 309-334, April.
    6. Wolfram Höpken & Matthias Fuchs, 2016. "Introduction: Special Issue on Business intelligence and big data in the travel and tourism domain," Information Technology & Tourism, Springer, vol. 16(1), pages 1-4, March.
    7. Dimitrios Buhalis & Aditya Amaranggana, 2013. "Smart Tourism Destinations," Springer Books, in: Zheng Xiang & Iis Tussyadiah (ed.), Information and Communication Technologies in Tourism 2014, edition 127, pages 553-564, Springer.
    8. Mateusz Naramski, 2020. "The Application of ICT and Smart Technologies in Polish Museums—Towards Smart Tourism," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(21), pages 1-27, November.
    9. Chia-Lin Chang & Michael McAleer & Vicente Ramos, 2020. "A Charter for Sustainable Tourism after COVID-19," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(9), pages 1-4, May.
    10. Nagy K. Hanna, 2010. "Implications of the ICT Revolution," Innovation, Technology, and Knowledge Management, in: Transforming Government and Building the Information Society, chapter 0, pages 27-65, Springer.
    11. Xianghong Zhou & Weiwei Chen, 2021. "The Impact of Informatization on the Relationship between the Tourism Industry and Regional Economic Development," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(16), pages 1-23, August.
    12. Joseph K. Nwankpa & Jeffrey W. Merhout, 2020. "Exploring the Effect of Digital Investment on IT Innovation," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(18), pages 1-26, September.
    13. Ginevra Balletto & Alessandra Milesi & Mara Ladu & Giuseppe Borruso, 2020. "A Dashboard for Supporting Slow Tourism in Green Infrastructures. A Methodological Proposal in Sardinia (Italy)," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(9), pages 1-23, April.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Ionica Oncioiu & Iustin Priescu, 2022. "The Use of Virtual Reality in Tourism Destinations as a Tool to Develop Tourist Behavior Perspective," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(7), pages 1-15, April.

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Volker Grossmann, 2005. "White-collar employment, inequality, and technological change," Journal of Economics, Springer, vol. 10(1), pages 119-142, December.
    2. Zand, Fardad & Van Beers, Cees & Van Leeuwen, George, 2011. "Information technology, organizational change and firm productivity: A panel study of complementarity effects and clustering patterns in Manufacturing and Services," MPRA Paper 46469, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    3. Dirk Pilat, 2001. "Productivity Growth in the OECD Area: Some Recent Findings," International Productivity Monitor, Centre for the Study of Living Standards, vol. 3, pages 32-44, Fall.
    4. Da Van Huynh & Thuy Thi Kim Truong & Long Hai Duong & Nhan Trong Nguyen & Giang Vu Huong Dao & Canh Ngoc Dao, 2021. "The COVID-19 Pandemic and Its Impacts on Tourism Business in a Developing City: Insight from Vietnam," Economies, MDPI, vol. 9(4), pages 1-17, November.
    5. Naveed, Kashif & Watanabe, Chihiro & Neittaanmäki, Pekka, 2018. "The transformative direction of innovation toward an IoT-based society - Increasing dependency on uncaptured GDP in global ICT firms," Technology in Society, Elsevier, vol. 53(C), pages 23-46.
    6. Junjie Gao & Younghwan Pan, 2022. "Evaluating Influencing Factors of Tourists’ Experiences with Smart Tour Guide System: A Mixed Method Research," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(23), pages 1-19, December.
    7. Robert C. Feenstra & Christopher R. Knittel, 2009. "Reassessing the US Quality Adjustment to Computer Prices: The Role of Durability and Changing Software," NBER Chapters, in: Price Index Concepts and Measurement, pages 129-160, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    8. Salinas Fernández, José Antonio & Guaita Martínez, José Manuel & Martín Martín, José María, 2022. "An analysis of the competitiveness of the tourism industry in a context of economic recovery following the COVID19 pandemic," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 174(C).
    9. Doru Marian Tudorache & Tamara Simon & Cristi Frenț & Mărioara Musteaţă-Pavel, 2017. "Difficulties and Challenges in Applying the European Tourism Indicators System (ETIS) for Sustainable Tourist Destinations: The Case of Braşov County in the Romanian Carpathians," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 9(10), pages 1-19, October.
    10. Mohammad Rashed Hasan Polas & Ratul Kumar Saha & Mosab I. Tabash, 2022. "How does tourist perception lead to tourist hesitation? Empirical evidence from Bangladesh," Environment, Development and Sustainability: A Multidisciplinary Approach to the Theory and Practice of Sustainable Development, Springer, vol. 24(3), pages 3659-3686, March.
    11. Robert J. Gordon, 2000. "Does the "New Economy" Measure Up to the Great Inventions of the Past?," Journal of Economic Perspectives, American Economic Association, vol. 14(4), pages 49-74, Fall.
    12. Łukasz Mamica & Jakub Głowacki & Kamil Makieła, 2021. "Determinants of the Energy Poverty of Polish Students during the COVID-19 Pandemic," Energies, MDPI, vol. 14(11), pages 1-15, June.
    13. Jeon, Heesang, 2015. "Knowledge and Contemporary Capitalism in Light of Marx's Value Theory," Thesis Commons g5njk, Center for Open Science.
    14. Will Chancellor, 2023. "Exploring the relationship between information and communication technology (ICT) and productivity: Evidence from Australian farms," Australian Journal of Agricultural and Resource Economics, Australian Agricultural and Resource Economics Society, vol. 67(2), pages 285-302, April.
    15. Christian M. Hafner, 2020. "The Spread of the Covid-19 Pandemic in Time and Space," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 17(11), pages 1-13, May.
    16. Bauer, Johannes M., 2018. "The Internet and income inequality: Socio-economic challenges in a hyperconnected society," Telecommunications Policy, Elsevier, vol. 42(4), pages 333-343.
    17. Pasquale Del Vecchio & Gioconda Mele & Valentina Ndou & Giustina Secundo, 2018. "Open Innovation and Social Big Data for Sustainability: Evidence from the Tourism Industry," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 10(9), pages 1-15, September.
    18. Patrizia Modica & Alessandro Capocchi & Ilaria Foroni & Mariangela Zenga, 2018. "An Assessment of the Implementation of the European Tourism Indicator System for Sustainable Destinations in Italy," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 10(9), pages 1-21, September.
    19. Young Lee & Jeong Hun Oh & Hwan-Joo Seo, 2002. "Digital Divide and Growth Gap: A Cumulative Relationship," WIDER Working Paper Series DP2002-88, World Institute for Development Economic Research (UNU-WIDER).
    20. Inessa Tyan & Mariemma I. Yagüe & Antonio Guevara-Plaza, 2020. "Blockchain Technology for Smart Tourism Destinations," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(22), pages 1-11, November.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:13:y:2021:i:19:p:11002-:d:649695. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: MDPI Indexing Manager (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://www.mdpi.com .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.