Impact of Telecommunications Infrastructure Construction on Innovation and Development in China: A Panel Data Approach

This paper empirically studies the impact of telecommunications infrastructure construction on economic and social innovative development using panel data from 31 provinces in China spanning from 2009 to 2022. The research findings indicate that telecommunication infrastructure significantly promotes innovation in terms of R&D investment, knowledge output, and application output. In addition, at various stages of telecommunication technology development, the impact on innovative development varies. Iterative updates in telecommunication technology drive higher R&D expenditures, facilitating better utilization of innovation outcomes in industries. Moreover, there are regional disparities in the influence of telecommunications infrastructure on economic and social innovative development. In the eastern regions, telecommunications infrastructure construction primarily promotes mobile communication, with clear spillover effects. In contrast, in western regions, it mainly facilitates fixed communication networks. Thus, further strengthening telecommunications infrastructure construction provides a new impetus for social innovative development and long-term sustainability. It is essential to persistently advance the coordinated construction of mobile and fixed communication infrastructure to achieve regional development coordination.