Modern communication channels together with new electronic media stan-
dards are constantly changing traditional interaction patterns of humans
and even machines In an increasingly globalized and networked world.
Such a communication-based interaction is of pivotal economic importance
in order to manage efficiently inter-organizational cooperation and
business information flows. Consequently, the availability of generally
accepted electronic commu- nication standards is essential in order to
decrease communication-related transaction costs. Roman Beck elaborates
in his dissertation The Network(ed) Economy the im- portance of the so
far independently from each other discussed diffusion the- ory on the
one hand and network effect theory on the other hand. However, Roman
Beck not only connects the two theories epistemologically, but also
develops and extends those theories by providing a network diffusion
model. The core of his model is the so-called network effect helix,
where a dynamic and self-enforcing interplay between direct and indirect
network effects is de- ployed to simulate diffusion patterns and paths
of communication standards. In his analysis, Roman Beck especially
focused on the critical diffusion period be- tween the market launch of
a new communication standard and (in case of a successful diffusion) the
achievement of a critical mass of adopters. His re- search results and
consequently the chosen title of the thesis are capable to il- lustrate
the overall topic of his work in the interesting area between an incom-
pletely interconnected "networked economy" on the one hand and a com-
pletely interconnected "network economy".
