Furthermore, Sweden is one of the absolute leaders in information technology (IT), both as regards Internet users and in broader terms such as the number of computers and mobile phones. In such surveys, the United States usually comes out top. The Internet makes it simple to obtain information, communicate with others and trade in goods and services. Price comparisons are already feasible and one can buy some goods and services, not least bank services. In these ways the Internet cuts distances, overcomes borders, contributes to a more competitive environment and enables consumers to be better informed. Everyone can get the information he or she needs easily and painlessly, often dispensing with intermediaries. Besides affecting consumer behaviour, the Internet and information technology in general have consequences for production processes. In addition to more informed consumers, we have firms with better oversight of production, material inputs, distribution processes and sales. Information technology compared with the railways Simplifying somewhat, the advent of the Internet can be compared with the era of railroad construction in Sweden in the second half of the 19th century. In the initial phase, there was a boom for those who constructed the railways and manufactured rolling stock. In the closing decade of the century, Swedish firms began to produce locomotives; previously that had been the preserve of British manufacturers. The Swedish firms took over the domestic market and were even able to export their products. Much the same happened with the manufacture of passenger carriages and goods wagons.

I base this on some, few, companies having seen their market power increase in recent years.7 These companies are often known as “superstars” and have high profit margins and have experienced high return on invested capital. They are often multinational corporations that sell products and services all over the world. At the same time, it appears as though smaller companies have fared less well. The difference in productivity between superstars and ordinary companies has also increased.8 When we talk to companies in our Business Survey, they largely confirm this picture. The companies that have long been subjected to international competition on global markets have a greater tendency to regard digitalisation as an opportunity than the consumer-related companies with most of their operations in Sweden. Change is a necessary condition for a prosperous society... Regardless of what stage of technological development we are at, it is clear that technological advances revolutionise lives and entire societies. The internal combustion engine transformed transportation in society. Electricity gave us light,  4 Cowen (2011). 5 Brynjolfsson and McAfee (2011). 6 https://voxeu.org/article/technological-progress-thing-past 7  See, for instance, De Loecker and Eekhout (2017, 2018). 8 OECD (2015). 3 [12]  heat and energy. Digitalisation, and above all the internet, has given us almost direct access to enormous amounts of information. Each new innovation replaces other products or changes their areas of use. Our behaviour changes and we make new demands of companies and decision-makers. In some branches the changes have been particularly marked over the past decade. One example is traditional media.