Journal of Economics and Development Studies

New Information and Communication Technologies and the Competitiveness of Companies within the Framework of a Cournot duopoly
Martin Njocke, Gabriel Njocke

Abstract
We evaluate the effects of New Information and Communication Technologies (NICTs) on the competitiveness of enterprises in a competitive environment, using a restricted Cournot duopoly model where two companies scramble for market shares. We consider two situations: a minimal information competition and an asymmetric information competition. The potential effects of NICTs on the competitiveness of an enterprise are varied: they could be positive, negative, neutral, or without importance beyond a certain level of usage. NICTs prove to be a necessary factor in the improvement of the competitiveness of an enterprise, but it cannot be considered sufficient. This analysis put to evidence the Solow Paradox that ‘one sees the computer age everywhere except in productivity statistics’.Other than the endogeneity of technological progress and flexibility between capital and labour, this study provides another explanation of the Solow Paradox,that is, information asymmetry.

Full Text: PDF     DOI: 10.15640/jeds.v5n4a3