Industry Convergence and Its Macro Measurement

The micro measurement of industry convergence may raise problems such as bias in sample selection and limitation of sample size. Therefore, this paper used the method of input-output and an econometric model to measure industry convergence from the macro perspective. First, the paper relied on China's input-output table of 2002 to calculate the direct consumption coefficients and demand coefficients between seven sectors within the electronic and information industry of China and made an empirical analysis on these sectors. Then, with the traditional telephone service demand model, we used panel data model to measure the "convergence of telephone, cable TV and Internet networks" in China from the demand perspective. The conclusion is that both supply side convergence and demand side convergence exist in the electronic and information industry of China and the former type prevails. The research indicates that with macro measurement of industry convergence, we can have an overall mastery of the situation of industry convergence or industrial segments convergence in a nation or a region.