Expert board:

• Scientific Council of RAS on economic history;
• Research and Educational Center «The economic history of Central Russia and the Middle Volga region» of Ogarev Mordovia State University;
• Center of Economic History of  Lomonosov Moscow State University

ISSN 2409-630X (Print), ISSN 2618-916X (Online)

DOI: 10.24412/2409-630X.071.021.202504.413-421

Аleksandr A. Somkin

National Research Ogarev Mordovia State University (Saransk, Russia ),

e-mail: alexsomkin@mail.ru

 

The Emergence of the Digital Economy: From the Dot-Com Bubble to the Big Tech Era (1995–2020)

 

Abstract

Introduction. The study analyzes a key stage in the development of the digital economy from 1995 to 2020, spanning from the dotcom bubble to the estab-lishment of Big Tech dominance. The relevance of the work stems from the need to comprehend the fundamental transformations that economic models, the labor market, and the competitive environment have undergone under the influence of digital platforms.

Methods. The research is based on a set of interdisciplinary methods, including historical-genetic analysis to identify cause-and-effect relationships, institutional analysis of the regulatory environment, case studies of companies, quantitative analysis of financial indicators and market concentration, as well as a com-parative analysis of digital ecosystem models.

Results. It was revealed that the dotcom bubble served as a “natural selec-tion” mechanism, separating viable business models from speculative ones. It was established that the foundation of the new economic paradigm is the shift towards “surveillance capitalism”, where data and user attention have become key assets. It was shown that the platform revolution led to systemic changes in the labor mar-ket, manifested in the growth of the gig economy and the formation of the pre-cariat.

Conclusions. The period from 1995 to 2020 was a time of formation for a new socio-economic reality, in which digital platforms acquired an infrastructural character and power comparable to that of nationstates. The emerged model has created a complex set of challenges, including problems of monopolization, labor precarization, erosion of privacy, and fragmentation of the global internet, necessitating the development of adequate legal and social policies for the digital age.

Keywords: digital economy, dot-com bubble, Big Tech, platform economy, digital platforms, network effects, surveillance capitalism, gig-economy, precariat, antitrust regulation, digital transformation, data economy.

For citation: Somkin A. A. The Emergence of the Digital Economy: From the Dot-Com Bubble to the Big Tech Era (1995–2020). Ekonomicheskaya istoriya = Russian Journal of Economic History. 2025; 21(4): 413–421. (In Russ.). DOI: 10.24412/2409-630X.071.021.202504.413–421.

 

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