![[Understanding the Digital Economy]](images/utde_s2.gif)
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 ![[The Great US Seal]](images/USseal2.jpg)
Conference Reviews Digital Economy, Examines Agenda For Future Research 
public conference was held on May 25 and 26, 1999, at the
Department of Commerce, to review recent
research on implications of the digital economy and examine the agenda
for future research, including the need for and possible sources of new
data, indicators, and tools.
The explosive growth of electronic commerce, combined with rapid changes in information, computing and communications sectors, is having a profound effect on the nation's economy. A year ago, the Department of Commerce released its report, The Emerging Digital Economy. Other reports have followed from the OECD, the National Science Foundation, and the National Research Council. The President recently directed the National Economic Council, in consultation with executive branch agencies, to analyze the economic impact of the Internet and electronic commerce in the United States and internationally and to consider new indicators for the information economy, new types of data collection, and new research that could be undertaken by organizations in the public and private sectors. The conference assessed research to date on the scale, direction, and significance of the emerging digital economy; engaged the private sector in suggesting the research, tools, indicators, and data collection that may help to inform investment decisions and policy development; and promoted an open research agenda for better understanding the growth and socioeconomic implications of information technology and electronic commerce. Economists and other social scientists prepared papers on the state of research and research needs in these areas.
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