The internet is an expanding opportunity for growth. This column argues that in recent years, however, policymakers and market actors have been undermining its potential. Governments and market actors are reducing both access to information and freedom of expression, as well as moving towards a splintered, non-global internet. Commitment to an open, free and global internet will be hard, but if bilateral, regional or multilateral trade agreements encourage interoperability, we might see some harmony among signatories’ privacy, online piracy, and security policies.

Today’s technological innovation is regarded by many as all about social media and entertainment, with no impact on economic growth. This column argues that such scepticism is premature. A closer look at selected industries suggests that the ‘industrial internet‘ – a network that binds together intelligent machines, software analytics and people – through accelerated adoption of sensors and software analytics, will have a powerful impact on productivity and growth.

In many countries, incumbent broadband providers are required to let new entrants access their network, what is called ‘local loop unbundling’ (LLU). This column uses data from the UK to ask whether such a policy stimulates broadband penetration. In contrast to what is commonly believed, local loop unbundling doesn’t provide more choice. However, it does raise both the quality of service and the speed of internet connections.

The internet has reduced dramatically the cost of varying prices, displays, and information provided to consumers. This column discusses how this change enables both passive and active experimentation by retailers, and how this experimentation can be used by economic researchers in a way that takes advantage of the scale and heterogeneity of online markets.

The Internet has opened up a whole new realm in advertising, with Google at the helm. Within this, search advertising has recently come under investigation from competition authorities. This column seeks to aid the understanding of this special market, its definition, its structure, and the role of its leader.

The internet is changing the way people do business. This column looks at how e-commerce has affected market structure among travel agencies, bookstores, and car dealerships. It suggests that low-cost firms will gain market share and may even become more profitable as e-commerce spreads, while higher-cost firms will be hurt, perhaps fatally.

Most of the Internet’s infrastructure is neutral with regard to data packets’ contents, but some groups are pushing for legislation to protect “network neutrality.” This column says that strictly neutral data transmission would cause inefficiencies and reduce the availability and quality of Internet services. It defends prioritising quality-sensitive data packets and argues that network neutrality legislation would be a heyday for lawyers and lobbyists.

Most governments in Europe are interested in boosting broadband penetration. This column presents new evidence on how various forms of market structure affect penetration ratios. It turns out that inter-platform competition (e.g. DSL vs cable) promotes broadband penetration while intra-platform competition doesn’t.