Abstract
The rapid diffusion of information technologies and the Internet gave birth to radical interpretations about their worldwide economic impacts. Three hypotheses widely discussed in the specialized literature are particularly interesting for their relevance for economic analysis and will be reviewed in this article based on empirical research on electronic commerce (EC) conducted by the Globalization and Electronic Commerce project at the University of California, Irvine. The first hypothesis states that EC diffusion is both a driving force and a consequence of the globalization process. The second is that new IT is giving birth to a "new economy" based on new information-based firms. Finally we analyze the hypothesis that EC is reducing the competitive disadvantages of small firms face their larger counterparts, thanks to informational and geographical impacts. Based on a survey with 200 firms, the article concludes that, at least in the case of Brazil, the findings do not support those hypotheses and that despite the undisputed importance of EC for business development, the technology itself determines neither industry structure or firms globalization strategies. Rather, EC helps firms and countries to further explore their existing economic trajectories.References
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