Service Providers of the Information Society - Sector Research and Development Leading in Sales-Related Activities Abroad

Companies in the sector service providers of the information society open up foreign markets in many ways. Around 25 percent of these companies export their services, about 20 percent work with foreign cooperation partners and eleven percent delegate their own employees to foreign countries. Approximately six percent of the companies serve foreign markets via branches and affiliated companies. Companies in the subsector research and development engage in sales-related activities abroad the most.

This is the result of a survey among service providers of the information society. The Centre for European Economic Research (ZEW) Mannheim conducted this survey in June 2010 in cooperation with the credit reference agency Creditreform, Neuss (details regarding the survey are provided below).

The economic sector service providers of the information society consists of ICT service providers (companies in the branches software and IT services, ICT-specialized trade as well as telecommunication services) and knowledge intensive service providers (companies in the branches tax consultancy and accounting, management consultancy, architecture, technical consultancies and planning, research and development and advertising companies). They open up foreign markets mainly by export activities, founding new branches, affiliated companies or delegating employees. In doing so, they strengthen their competitiveness in an increasingly globalized economy. The companies in the branches research and development are, compared to other companies, the most active with regard to sales-related activities abroad. "More than half of these companies state that they export services to foreign countries. Furthermore, about 37 percent cooperate with foreign partners and approximately one fifth of the companies report to have a branch or an affiliated company abroad," explains Miruna Sarbu, researcher at ZEW.

Tax consultants and accountants make up the subsector of the economic branch service providers of the information society, which has the lowest export rate with only three percent. With regard to branches and affiliated companies in other countries, management consultants come in last with three percent. Regarding the cooperation with foreign partners, architects are the last with six percent. With respect to delegating employees to foreign countries, however, management consultants rank first with about 16 percent, whereas tax consultants and accountants come in last with only one percent.

The economic survey conducted by the ZEW/Creditreform

About 900 businesses participate in the quarterly survey. The economic sector service providers of the information society consists of information and communication technology (ICT) service providers (businesses of the branches software and IT services, ICT-specialized trade and telecommunication services) and knowledge intensive service providers (businesses of the branches tax consultancy and accounting, business consultancy, architectural offices, technical consultancy and planning, research and development and advertising).

Comment on the projection

To ensure the representativity of the analyses, the ZEW projects the answers of the participants of the survey with the turnover value of the businesses with regard to the entire economic branch.

For further information please contact

Miruna Sarbu, Phone: +49 (0)621/1235-334, E-mail: sarbu@zew.de