Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) and performance of firms in Italy

This work provides analysis on the relationship that exists between Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) and productivity of firms in Europe and, in particular, in the Italian economy. The development of the ICT sector plays an important role in enhancing the technological progress at micro end macro levels. As we show, an intensive ICT-production and ICT-using have led to the increase of labour productivity in different economic sectors, increasing welfare. We demonstrate that in Italian economy, where more than half of the firms are involved in ICT-using, ICT diffusion plays a crucial role in the development of regions that present a lag in their economic development.