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Internet Penetration and Firm Innovation in the Digital Era: A Sectoral Analysis of U.S. Firms
This paper studies the effect of macro-level internet penetration on firm-level innovation in the United States, proxied by research and development expenditure. The IV approach is used to address the problem of potential endogeneity, covering data from 2000 to 2022 across five super industries: con...
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AUC Knowledge Fountain
2025
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| _version_ | 1867613424384475136 |
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| access_status_str | Open Access |
| author | ElGarf, Mariam |
| author_browse | ElGarf, Mariam |
| author_facet | ElGarf, Mariam |
| author_sort | ElGarf, Mariam |
| collection | Thesis |
| description | This paper studies the effect of macro-level internet penetration on firm-level innovation in the United States, proxied by research and development expenditure. The IV approach is used to address the problem of potential endogeneity, covering data from 2000 to 2022 across five super industries: consumer goods and retail, energy and electricity, media and entertainment, financial services, and technology and telecommunications. The results show that internet penetration has a positive effect on the innovative performance of all sectors; however, this effect is more pronounced in the financial service and media sectors. Firm-specific characteristics also influence this relationship, such as debt-to-assets ratio, capital expenditure, and unemployment rate. Given sectoral differences, the study highlights the transformative role of internet accessibility in fostering innovation. While the analysis is limited to macro-level penetration in the U.S. context, the findings underline the importance of policies aimed at improving access to the internet, industry-specific digital transformation, and supporting R&D for sustainable economic growth. |
| format | Thesis |
| id | oai:fount.aucegypt.edu:etds-3483 |
| institution | American University in Cairo (Egypt) |
| last_indexed | 2026-06-10T12:35:55.364Z |
| license_str | Not specified — see source repository |
| provenance_str_mv | Harvested via OAI-PMH from AUC Knowledge Fountain — bepress |
| publishDate | 2025 |
| publishDateRange | 2025 |
| publishDateSort | 2025 |
| publisher | AUC Knowledge Fountain |
| publisherStr | AUC Knowledge Fountain |
| record_format | dspace |
| source_str | AUC Knowledge Fountain — bepress |
| spelling | oai:fount.aucegypt.edu:etds-3483 Internet Penetration and Firm Innovation in the Digital Era: A Sectoral Analysis of U.S. Firms ElGarf, Mariam This paper studies the effect of macro-level internet penetration on firm-level innovation in the United States, proxied by research and development expenditure. The IV approach is used to address the problem of potential endogeneity, covering data from 2000 to 2022 across five super industries: consumer goods and retail, energy and electricity, media and entertainment, financial services, and technology and telecommunications. The results show that internet penetration has a positive effect on the innovative performance of all sectors; however, this effect is more pronounced in the financial service and media sectors. Firm-specific characteristics also influence this relationship, such as debt-to-assets ratio, capital expenditure, and unemployment rate. Given sectoral differences, the study highlights the transformative role of internet accessibility in fostering innovation. While the analysis is limited to macro-level penetration in the U.S. context, the findings underline the importance of policies aimed at improving access to the internet, industry-specific digital transformation, and supporting R&D for sustainable economic growth. 2025-02-19T08:00:00Z thesis application/pdf https://fount.aucegypt.edu/etds/2435 https://fount.aucegypt.edu/context/etds/article/3483/viewcontent/Fall2024_Mariam_ElGarf_Thesis_Submission_VF.pdf Theses and Dissertations AUC Knowledge Fountain Digital Economy Internet Penetration Innovation R&D Expenditures Sectoral Analysis US Firms Firm-Level Data Econometrics Economics |
| spellingShingle | Digital Economy Internet Penetration Innovation R&D Expenditures Sectoral Analysis US Firms Firm-Level Data Econometrics Economics ElGarf, Mariam Internet Penetration and Firm Innovation in the Digital Era: A Sectoral Analysis of U.S. Firms |
| title | Internet Penetration and Firm Innovation in the Digital Era: A Sectoral Analysis of U.S. Firms |
| title_full | Internet Penetration and Firm Innovation in the Digital Era: A Sectoral Analysis of U.S. Firms |
| title_fullStr | Internet Penetration and Firm Innovation in the Digital Era: A Sectoral Analysis of U.S. Firms |
| title_full_unstemmed | Internet Penetration and Firm Innovation in the Digital Era: A Sectoral Analysis of U.S. Firms |
| title_short | Internet Penetration and Firm Innovation in the Digital Era: A Sectoral Analysis of U.S. Firms |
| title_sort | internet penetration and firm innovation in the digital era a sectoral analysis of u s firms |
| topic | Digital Economy Internet Penetration Innovation R&D Expenditures Sectoral Analysis US Firms Firm-Level Data Econometrics Economics |
| url | https://fount.aucegypt.edu/etds/2435 https://fount.aucegypt.edu/context/etds/article/3483/viewcontent/Fall2024_Mariam_ElGarf_Thesis_Submission_VF.pdf |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT elgarfmariam internetpenetrationandfirminnovationinthedigitaleraasectoralanalysisofusfirms |