IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/spr/anresc/v52y2014i1p65-85.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

The tyranny of distance prevails: HTTP protocol latency and returns to fast fibre internet access network deployment in remote economies

Author

Listed:
  • Mark Obren
  • Bronwyn Howell

Abstract

Public policies to deploy enhanced local broadband access infrastructure in locations physically very far removed from the firms and customers with whom they transact are frequently justified by claims of increased competitiveness arising from the elimination of the ‘tyrannies of distance’. Yet relative distance-based disadvantages remain in respect of time-dependent applications and those hosted on distant infrastructures or requiring data sourced from distant locations. Trading off the effects of faster local access and latency on the time taken to load a Web page based on the HTTP Web protocol, we demonstrate that the increasing returns to distance rapidly overcome the effect of faster local access bandwidth as the distance the data must travel increases. We conclude that claims that investment in ultra-fast local broadband access will unconditionally facilitate a step-change in national economic performance are without foundation. In the absence of some compelling underlying competitive advantages, the ‘transformational’ economic benefits will be local rather than international in nature. At best, government investment in nationwide fast fibre networks is a defensive strategy that enables ongoing participation in the international economy, but at relatively higher costs than those faced by larger economies in closer proximity to end markets. Copyright Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg 2014

Suggested Citation

  • Mark Obren & Bronwyn Howell, 2014. "The tyranny of distance prevails: HTTP protocol latency and returns to fast fibre internet access network deployment in remote economies," The Annals of Regional Science, Springer;Western Regional Science Association, vol. 52(1), pages 65-85, January.
    • Handle: RePEc:spr:anresc:v:52:y:2014:i:1:p:65-85
    DOI: 10.1007/s00168-013-0574-0
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://hdl.handle.net/10.1007/s00168-013-0574-0
    Download Restriction: Access to full text is restricted to subscribers.
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1007/s00168-013-0574-0?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to search for a different version of it.

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Bryn Battersby, 2007. "Does distance matter?: The effect of geographic isolation on productivity levels," OECD Economic Studies, OECD Publishing, vol. 2006(1), pages 205-225.
    2. Danny Quah, 2002. "Technology Dissemination and Economic Growth: Some Lessons for the New Economy," CEP Discussion Papers dp0522, Centre for Economic Performance, LSE.
    3. Jyoti Rahman, 2005. "Comparing Australian and United States productivity," Economic Roundup, The Treasury, Australian Government, issue 2, pages 27-45, June.
    4. Edward L. Glaeser & Joshua D. Gottlieb, 2008. "The Economics of Place-Making Policies," Brookings Papers on Economic Activity, Economic Studies Program, The Brookings Institution, vol. 39(1 (Spring), pages 155-253.
    5. Quah, Danny, 2002. "Technology Dissemination and Economic Growth: Some Lessons for the New Economy," CEPR Discussion Papers 3207, C.E.P.R. Discussion Papers.
    6. Arthur Grimes & Cleo Ren & Philip Stevens, 2012. "The need for speed: impacts of internet connectivity on firm productivity," Journal of Productivity Analysis, Springer, vol. 37(2), pages 187-201, April.
    7. Quah, Danny, 2002. "Technology dissemination and economic growth: some lessons for the new economy," LSE Research Online Documents on Economics 2118, London School of Economics and Political Science, LSE Library.
    8. Lewis Evans & Patrick Hughes, 2003. "Competition Policy in Small Distant Open Economies: Some Lessons from the Economics Literature," Treasury Working Paper Series 03/31, New Zealand Treasury.
    9. Hervé Boulhol & Alain de Serres & Margit Molnár, 2008. "The contribution of economic geography to GDP per capita," OECD Journal: Economic Studies, OECD Publishing, vol. 2008(1), pages 1-37.
    10. Bronwyn HOWELL & Arthur GRIMES, 2010. "Productivity Questions for Public Sector Fast Fibre Network Financiers," Communications & Strategies, IDATE, Com&Strat dept., vol. 1(78), pages 127-146, 2nd quart.
    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. Craig, Steven G. & Hoang, Edward C. & Kohlhase, Janet E., 2017. "Does closeness in virtual space complement urban space?," Socio-Economic Planning Sciences, Elsevier, vol. 58(C), pages 22-29.
    2. Alizadeh, Tooran & Grubesic, Tony & Helderop, Edward, 2020. "Socio-spatial patterns of the national broadband network revealed: Lessons from greater Sydney, Melbourne, and Brisbane," Telecommunications Policy, Elsevier, vol. 44(5).

    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. Raéf Bahrini & Alaa A. Qaffas, 2019. "Impact of Information and Communication Technology on Economic Growth: Evidence from Developing Countries," Economies, MDPI, vol. 7(1), pages 1-13, March.
    2. Ajoy Ketan Sarangi & Rudra Prakash Pradhan, 2020. "ICT infrastructure and economic growth: a critical assessment and some policy implications," DECISION: Official Journal of the Indian Institute of Management Calcutta, Springer;Indian Institute of Management Calcutta, vol. 47(4), pages 363-383, December.
    3. Bronwyn HOWELL & Arthur GRIMES, 2010. "Productivity Questions for Public Sector Fast Fibre Network Financiers," Communications & Strategies, IDATE, Com&Strat dept., vol. 1(78), pages 127-146, 2nd quart.
    4. Jonathan Temple, 2002. "The Assessment: The New Economy," Oxford Review of Economic Policy, Oxford University Press and Oxford Review of Economic Policy Limited, vol. 18(3), pages 241-264.
    5. Grace Li Ann Yong & Kong Weng Ho, 2006. "Innovation, Imitation And Entrepreneurship," The Singapore Economic Review (SER), World Scientific Publishing Co. Pte. Ltd., vol. 51(02), pages 147-173.
    6. Ornaghi, Carmine, 2006. "Spillovers in product and process innovation: Evidence from manufacturing firms," International Journal of Industrial Organization, Elsevier, vol. 24(2), pages 349-380, March.
    7. Matti Pohjola, 2002. "The New Economy in Growth and Development," Oxford Review of Economic Policy, Oxford University Press and Oxford Review of Economic Policy Limited, vol. 18(3), pages 380-396.
    8. Ralph Hippe & Roger Fouquet, 2024. "The Human Capital Transition and the Role of Policy," Springer Books, in: Claude Diebolt & Michael Haupert (ed.), Handbook of Cliometrics, edition 3, pages 411-457, Springer.
    9. Kenneth Carlaw & Les Oxley & Paul Walker & David Thorns & Michael Nuth, 2006. "Beyond The Hype: Intellectual Property And The Knowledge Society/Knowledge Economy," Journal of Economic Surveys, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 20(4), pages 633-690, September.
    10. Ben Lahouel, Béchir & Taleb, Lotfi & Ben Zaied, Younes & Managi, Shunsuke, 2021. "Does ICT change the relationship between total factor productivity and CO2 emissions? Evidence based on a nonlinear model," Energy Economics, Elsevier, vol. 101(C).
    11. Evangelia Vourvachaki, 2005. "Information and Communication Technologies in a Multi-Sector Endogenous Growth Model," Money Macro and Finance (MMF) Research Group Conference 2005 10, Money Macro and Finance Research Group.
    12. repec:vuw:vuwscr:18994 is not listed on IDEAS
    13. Sandeep Kapur, 2002. "Developing Countries in the New Economy: The Role of Demand-side Initiatives," WIDER Working Paper Series DP2002-73, World Institute for Development Economic Research (UNU-WIDER).
    14. Shahnazi, Rouhollah, 2021. "Do information and communications technology spillovers affect labor productivity?," Structural Change and Economic Dynamics, Elsevier, vol. 59(C), pages 342-359.
    15. Howell, Bronwyn & Obren, Mark, 2002. "Broadband Diffusion: Lags from Vintage Capital, Learning by Doing, Information Barriers and Network Effects," Working Paper Series 18994, Victoria University of Wellington, The New Zealand Institute for the Study of Competition and Regulation.
    16. Uyar, Ali & Nimer, Khalil & Kuzey, Cemil & Shahbaz, Muhammad & Schneider, Friedrich, 2021. "Can e-government initiatives alleviate tax evasion? The moderation effect of ICT," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 166(C).
    17. Howell, Bronwyn & Obren, Mark, 2002. "Broadband Diffusion: Lags from Vintage Capital, Learning by Doing, Information Barriers and Network Effects," Working Paper Series 3896, Victoria University of Wellington, The New Zealand Institute for the Study of Competition and Regulation.
    18. Gregory, Robert G., 2012. "Living standards, terms of trade and foreign ownership: reflections on the Australian mining boom," Australian Journal of Agricultural and Resource Economics, Australian Agricultural and Resource Economics Society, vol. 56(2), pages 1-30.
    19. Eric J. Bartelsman & Martin Falk & Eva Hagsten & Michael Polder, 2019. "Productivity, technological innovations and broadband connectivity: firm-level evidence for ten European countries," Eurasian Business Review, Springer;Eurasia Business and Economics Society, vol. 9(1), pages 25-48, March.
    20. Bai, Yang, 2017. "The faster, the better? The impact of internet speed on employment," Information Economics and Policy, Elsevier, vol. 40(C), pages 21-25.
    21. Fabling, Richard & Grimes, Arthur, 2021. "Picking up speed: Does ultrafast broadband increase firm productivity?," Information Economics and Policy, Elsevier, vol. 57(C).

    More about this item

    Keywords

    O18; O33; R11; R12;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • O18 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Economic Development - - - Urban, Rural, Regional, and Transportation Analysis; Housing; Infrastructure
    • O33 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Innovation; Research and Development; Technological Change; Intellectual Property Rights - - - Technological Change: Choices and Consequences; Diffusion Processes
    • R11 - Urban, Rural, Regional, Real Estate, and Transportation Economics - - General Regional Economics - - - Regional Economic Activity: Growth, Development, Environmental Issues, and Changes
    • R12 - Urban, Rural, Regional, Real Estate, and Transportation Economics - - General Regional Economics - - - Size and Spatial Distributions of Regional Economic Activity; Interregional Trade (economic geography)

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    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:spr:anresc:v:52:y:2014:i:1:p:65-85. 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: Sonal Shukla or Springer Nature Abstracting and Indexing (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.springer.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.