International: MIT Press, Cambridge, Massachusetts.
Location:
Agricultural Communications Documentation Center, Funk Library, University of Illinois Box: 114 Document Number: D11015
Notes:
Chapter in NBER book: Adam B. Jaffe, Josh Lerner and Scott Stern (eds.), Innovation policy and the economy, volume 6, pages 67-90., Author examines sources of consumer surplus that are likely to exist due to the types of sites being used online and points to research that quantifies the consumer gains from use of the Internet. ... Reports that the Internet increases price competition so that consumers pay less for products and improves daily life by increasing the variety, quality and availability of products and information. These gains are particularly useful to people with high transactions costs (busy, rural) and uninformed people. By allowing consumers in rural or sparsely populated areas to share tastes which might be rare in the local population, it particularly benefits consumers who might have more difficulty physically interacting with people of their tastes.
Agricultural Communications Documentation Center, Funk Library, University of Illinois Document Number: C36364
Notes:
Pages 243-262 in Benjamin M. Compaine (ed.), The digital divide: facing a crisis or creating a myth? MIT Press, Cambridge, Massachusetts. 357 pages., Author suggests that the digital divide may be disappearing on its own through declining cost, natural acculturation and growing availability. Observes that the lower cost of living in rural areas may more than compensate for having to pay higher rates closer to full cost of telecommunications.
