Towards Measuring the Platform Economy: Concepts, Indicators, and Issues

As digital platforms provide consumers opportunities to interact with suppliers of goods and services through the internet, these platforms have radically transformed business activities, as well as the nature of work. The disruptions from the novel coronavirus pandemic also show how platforms enable people to cope with disruptions and to increasingly produce goods and services themselves in some sectors, such as transportation services, food and accommodation, and culture and recreational industries. These platforms provide intermediary and financial services, either implicitly or explicitly, and it is important that policymakers, businesses, and people, in general, have a better sense of the platform economy. National statistical systems, however, hardly give a clear and integrated portrait of the role, nature and size of the platform economy in large part because of measurement issues. This paper defines platforms, typologies and related definitions and classifications, describes drivers of value creation and capture in platforms, and discusses policy implications. It also discusses the major challenges in data collection, arising from the cross-border nature of platforms, as well as the complex activities in a platform economy, among others. The paper also discusses, albeit briefly, some policy implications for the measurement of the platform economy to better understand the socioeconomic implications of increasing digitalization and the rise of the platform economy. Comments to this paper are welcome within 60 days from date of posting. Email publications@mail.pids.gov.ph.