Internet companies continue to drive growth and jobs in the...
Internet companies continue to drive growth and jobs in the information and communications technology sector, the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development said Thursday. The OECD Internet Economy Outlook 2012 report said the top 250 ICT businesses, ranked by revenue,…
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boosted employment by 4 percent in 2010 and 6 percent last year. Hiring grew faster among Internet companies, which increased employment by 20 percent in 2011, mostly driven by Amazon and Google adding 50 percent more employees in 2010-2011, it said. ICT sector employment is highest in the U.S., followed by Japan and Germany, it said. The IT services industry survived the 2009 financial downturn better than manufacturing, returning to positive growth in early 2010, it said. That’s likely attributable to growing specialization in ICT services in OECD countries, while manufacturing has shifted to lower-cost production, it said. ICTs increasingly help business become more efficient, it said. Companies may look to ICTs to cut costs during the financial crisis, creating a continuing demand for such services as other budgets are cut, it said. That’s true for the telecom sector, which continued to perform well because households and individuals consider its services essential, it said. Globally, ICT spending is expected to reach over $4 billion in 2012, the OECD said. The structure of ICT spending is shifting as consumers now make up one-third of the total ICT market, mainly driven by increasing demand for mobile devices, it said. The report launched a new methodology for measuring the economic benefits of the Internet. Based on national statistics, the OECD found that for 2010, up to 13 percent of American business GDP could be attributed to the Internet. The report underscores the “need to promote Internet openness and balanced approaches to intellectual property policy” so the tech sector can continue to thrive, said Computer & Communications Industry Association Vice President and Brussels Director James Waterworth. European policymakers must ensure that laws don’t harm the Internet economy and that vested interests don’t impede important economic, political and social changes, he said.