"The first wave (of successful businesses) demanded access to financial capital," Dr Bregman said. The second wave, in the middle of the century, was when the key asset was intellectual capital.

"This third wave is based on the use of information technology and a very rich 'infostructure' which makes it very difficult for a large enterprise to retain control of its intellectual capital.

Understanding the economics of infostructure requires public policy research. It is common sense that a well-conceived infrastructure allows a society to improve productivity, but there is little analysis to prove this. Research should address issues such as which conditions encourage and which inhibit the development and deployment of new forms of infostructure.

A third complicating factor is the reliance of Canadian industry upon the research and development of the North American industrial infostructure.