Network Economy: Evolution of Development, Prerequisites for the Formation of the Conception, Conceptual Approaches to the Definition
Authors:   O. M. Beketov National University of Urban Economy in Kharkiv, Kyzym Mykola O. , Khaustova Viktoriia Ye. ,   Research Centre of Industrial Problems of Development of NAS of Ukraine, Trushkina Nataliia V. ,   Research Centre of Industrial Problems of Development of NAS of Ukraine
Published: January 2023

New economic conditions in the context of the information and technological revolution led to an increase in the role and importance of intangible factors of production, in particular information and knowledge resources. Transformational processes that covered all aspects of society, turned it from industrial one to post-industrial service-information (network-based) one with the appropriate type of economy. All this, in turn, determines that the dominant tendency of the contemporary world economic development is the formation of a network economy, which leads to radical transformations of various spheres of economic activity. In view of this, the study is aimed at the theoretically summarizing and systematizing the exitant conceptual approaches to the interpretation of the concept of «network economy»; substantiating the authors’ approach to defining the content of this scientific category. As result of the study, it is found that the concept of «network economy» is synonymous with such definitions as: high-tech economics; knowledge economy; global, new, informational, digital, digitalized, virtual, information and network-based, electronic, cognitive, noospheric, creative, service, innovative, intellectual economy; post-industrial society; information society; network intelligence society; e-business, etc. Using a system approach and the classification method, the interpretations of the term «network economy», which are proposed by various scientific schools, are conditionally systematized in the following groups: the basis of the information society; new economic system; a new type of economy; state of the economy; specific form of organization; a qualitatively new form of management of the national economy; type of economic system; type of post-industrial economy; characteristics of the global economy; form of innovative economy; innovation factor; system of new economic relations; multilevel spatial structure; structured information space; interactive environment; form of economic activity; an instrument to increase the level of development of the knowledge economy; national security mechanism. The article provides an authors’ approach to defining the category of «network economy» as a new type of economic environment resulting from the digitalization of fast-growing, highly interactive real-time connections between economic agents, different categories of stakeholders, digital technologies, information systems, devices, electronic networks. It is proposed that network economy as a category be considered according to the three positions: as an economic activity carried out through electronic and computer networks; as a global information environment where subjects of economic relations can contact each other about joint activities using digital technologies; as a fundamentally new form of management of the national economy, based on horizontal (direct) long-term partnerships between economic entities in a single digital space in the context of globalization.