Bangalore: Digitally driven economic growth continues to be one of the few bright spots in a sluggish global economy. Reducing or eliminating numerous factors that inhibit online interactions and exchange could cause this growth to be even faster and could have an even bigger impact. To better understand these sources of “e-friction” and how they constrain economic activity, the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) commissioned The Boston Consulting Group to prepare this independent report.  

Reducing or eliminating sources of “e-friction” can grease the wheels of the Internet economy worldwide. The BCG e-Friction Index measures the four types of friction that prevent consumers, companies, and countries from realizing the Internet’s full benefits.

#1 Infrastructure-related friction—the most significant—limits basic access to online activity.

#2 Industry-related sources of friction, such as shortages of capital and skilled labor, hold back successful online business operations and the development of digital businesses.

#3 Individual friction—payment systems and data security are two examples—affects the degree to which citizens and consumers engage in online activities.

#4 Information-related friction includes the volume of content available in a local language, a country’s commitment to Internet openness, and obstacles to accessing certain types of content.