|
on Information and Communication Technologies |
| By: | OECD |
| Abstract: | This report considers the transition from IPv4 to IPv6 alongside the use of network technologies to prolong IPv4 use in the face of depletion of further IPv4 protocol addresses, but it does not aim to address all issues surrounding the transition to IPv6 or to detail the economic incentives faced by various Internet actors. It first provides a status update of address management issues and the run-out of IPv4. It then describes the advantages and limitations of increased use of network address translation as one response to sustain the use of IPv4 in the face of IPv4 address exhaustion. It provides an overview of the IPv6 protocol; the advantages of IPv6 deployment as a response to IPv4 address exhaustion and the IPv6 transition plan compared to actual deployment to date. Finally, the report examines the choices facing individual actors, their potential consequences, and the policy implications on openness and innovation for the future of the Internet. |
| Date: | 2014–04–03 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:oec:stiaab:234-en&r=ict |
| By: | Claudio Vitari (MTS - Management Technologique et Strategique - Grenoble École de Management (GEM)) |
| Abstract: | By one hand, the nature of money influences the objects, the objectives and the methods of production and consumption. On the other hand, the distribution of money influences human behaviors, the supply and the demand of goods, and hence their prices. Today, the banking sector enjoys the privilege of creating around 95% of the money supply. Moreover, as bank money bears interest as a condition of its existence, it has long been argued that a systemic growth imperative is inherent to its design. The pursuit of the interrelated goals of ecological sustainability and social justice calls for changes to money-as-usual. This article focuses on degrowth as a novel paradigm that advances changes in money nature and distribution. We scrutinize electronic currencies, which may be defined as alternatives or complements to legal tender money that circulate in electronic forms. At the hearth of the electronic currencies, Information and Communication Technology has the potential for changing modern society. But does Information and Communication Technology shape our society for purposive degrowth? The article aims to explore to what extent electronic currencies can be considered as practical initiatives for advancing socially equitable and ecologically sustainable degrowth. A literature review is the method employed to bring a first preliminary answer to the research question. Our results show that electronic currencies can contribute at the individual level to support purchases and at the society level to support optimal allocation of resources. Nothing emerged, in literature, supporting the hypothesis that electronic currency could shape our society for purposive degrowth. Extension of the literature review and empirical study of electronic currencies in action will be the next research steps. |
| Keywords: | Electronic currencies; degrowth; money; work system framework; Information and Communication Technology. |
| Date: | 2014 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:hal:gemwpa:hal-00975432&r=ict |
| By: | Charness, Gary (University of California, Santa Barbara); Feri, Francesco (University of Innsbruck); Meléndez-Jiménez, Miguel A. (University of Malaga); Sutter, Matthias (European University Institute) |
| Abstract: | In this paper, we describe a series of laboratory experiments that implement specific examples of a more general network structure and we examine equilibrium selection. Specifically, actions are either strategic substitutes or strategic complements, and participants have either complete or incomplete information about the structure of a random network. Since economic environments typically have a considerable degree of complementarity or substitutability, this framework applies to a wide variety of settings. The degree of equilibrium play is striking, in particular with incomplete information. Behavior closely resembles the theoretical equilibrium whenever this is unique; when there are multiple equilibria, general features of networks, such as connectivity, clustering, and the degree of the players, help to predict informed behavior in the lab. People appear to be strongly attracted to maximizing aggregate payoffs (social efficiency), but there are forces that moderate this attraction: 1) people seem content with (in the aggregate) capturing only the lion's share of the efficient profits in exchange for reduced exposure to loss, and 2) uncertainty about the network structure makes it considerably more difficult to coordinate on a demanding, but efficient, equilibrium that is typically implemented with complete information. |
| Keywords: | random networks, incomplete information, connectivity, clustering, strategic substitutes, strategic complements, experiment |
| JEL: | C71 C91 D03 D85 |
| Date: | 2014–04 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:iza:izadps:dp8104&r=ict |