Digital Economy

International Trade in ICT and Digitally Deliverable Services

BEA's statistics on trade in information and communications technology (ICT) and digitally deliverable services complement its standard presentation of international trade in services statistics by examining the extent to which ICT may be used to facilitate trade in services. (Previously, trade in digitally deliverable services was called trade in potentially ICT-enabled services.) ICT services are services that are used to facilitate information processing and communication; digitally deliverable services are services that can predominantly be delivered remotely over ICT networks. BEA measures digitally deliverable services rather than digitally delivered services themselves because for many types of services the actual mode of delivery is unknown.

Price Measurement of High-Tech Goods and Services

BEA is consistently working toward improving price measurement, especially for high-tech goods and services which frequently experience changing characteristics, improved quality, and price changes relative to other goods and services.

Data as an Asset

Other Research and Information

Digital Economy Satellite Account

BEA includes in its definition of the digital economy four major types of goods and services:

• Infrastructure, or the basic physical materials and organizational arrangements that support the existence and use of computer networks and the digital economy, primarily information and communications technology (ICT) goods and services.
• E-commerce, or the remote sale of goods and services over computer networks.
• Priced digital services, or services related to computing and communication that are performed for a fee charged to the consumer.
• Federal nondefense digital services represents the annual budget for federal nondefense government agencies whose services are directly related to supporting the digital economy.