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| A Study of the Measurement, Spatial Differences and Convergence of Virtual Agglomeration in China |
| Tian Lin, Zhang Shijie |
| Business School, Zhengzhou University, Zhengzhou 450001, China |
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Abstract With the popularity of a new generation of information technology represented by big data and the Internet of Things, data as the core factor of production has broken through the limits of time and space, and shifted both supply and demand sides and related enterprises from a geographic space to a virtual space, thereby realizing the agglomeration of a complex multi-dimensional space. Xi Jinping has repeatedly stressed the importance of developing digital economy, accelerating the promotion of digital industrialization, relying on information technology innovation-driven mode, constantly catalyzing new industries, new formats, new models, and exploring new momentum to promote new development. As an emerging phenomenon and a new discipline, virtual agglomeration paves a new way for factor integration, economic transformation and innovation of industrial ecological chain. However, there is no ready-made and mature development model of the new concept in China, and existing research stays primitively in the phase of theoretical deduction or case studies. Therefore, it is of vital importance to give a reasonable measurement of the level of China’s virtual agglomeration, analyze the operation characteristics of the system and its driving effect on the development and change of production, organization and management, so as to construct a virtual agglomeration academic research system with Chinese characteristics and formulate high-quality development strategies for various regions and industries.Combined with the connotation characteristics of virtual agglomeration and the theory of technological innovation diffusion, this paper puts forward an interactive circular virtual agglomeration operation system composed of four links: investment promotion, absorption and acquisition, upgrade of spatial structure and cumulative cycle. On this basis, this paper constructs a virtual agglomeration index system covering four dimensions: geographical network agglomeration, network agglomeration, talent innovation agglomeration and external resource agglomeration. In addition, entropy weight method is used to measure the virtual agglomeration level of 31 provinces in China from 2014 to 2019; spatial econometric method is used to analyze the temporal and spatial deductive characteristics of the whole country and various regions. It is found that: (1) The development level of virtual agglomeration in China’s provinces generally shows an upward trend, which is characterized by the spatial distribution of “high in the east and low in the west, and the coastal area is better than the inland”. (2) There is a spatial asymmetry pattern in the level of virtual agglomeration. The eastern coastal provinces are mainly concentrated in high-high value agglomeration areas, while the central and western provinces are in low-low value agglomeration areas. (3) There exists an absolute β-convergence and conditional β-convergence trends of virtual agglomeration in China. The convergence rate is: west>central>east, and each region finally converges to the steady-state level.Based on the above observations, the following policy implications are put forward: (1) Implementation of differentiated development strategy of virtual agglomeration for different regions. Eastern developed regions need to improve the economic effect of virtual agglomeration and accelerate the construction of digital economy. Central and western regions should increase infrastructure construction and preferential policies, clarify the natural resources features, location advantages and functional orientation of cities, promote the coordinated development of “Internet Plus” and other industries, and achieve a highly flat functional pattern of horizontal dislocation development and vertical division and coordination, and thus improve the endogenous virtual agglomeration. (2) Fully understand the unbalanced spatial distribution characteristics of virtual agglomeration. Provinces with low-low value agglomeration areas should avoid falling into the “trap” of low-end path dependence, take the lead in cultivating a number of potential “growth pole” cities, and drive the improvement of virtual agglomeration level in surrounding areas through the superposition of multiple effects such as multiplier effect, dominance effect and polarization diffusion effect. For high-high value agglomeration areas, efforts can be made to transform the “siphon effect” into “radiation effect” through coordinated development among regions, so as to give full play to the “highland role” of high virtual agglomeration provinces. (3) Since the virtual agglomeration operation system is a process of investment promotion, absorption and acquisition, upgrade of spatial structure and cumulative cycle, the formation and development of its pattern is endogenous, and it is impossible to achieve fully balanced development in any region and city. Therefore, under the premise of “spatial justice”, the government should ensure equal development opportunities of vulnerable areas and realize interactive coupling, moderate differences and coordinated development of virtual agglomeration in various regions.
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Received: 19 April 2021
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2023, Vol. 53 
