Google's Impact in the UK

If you’re like the vast majority of people in this country, you’ll have used a search engine at some point today: to check a fact or to look up when your GP opens, to
find a restaurant or browse the news. If you have kids at school, they’ll probably have used either Google Search or YouTube to help with their homework. And at work you
might use Gmail for your email or Google Docs to co-operate on a new report, while your employer uses Google Ads and Google Search to seek out new customers.

Many of us are doing things that would have been almost impossible in the past-- from communicating in any one of over 100 languages using Google Translate toexploring the furthest parts of the Scottish Highlands using Google Maps.

It is easy to take a world of more information for granted. 2018 is the twentieth anniversary of Google Search. Today we live in a world in which access to much of our collective knowledge is just a click away. Many of the benefits created by the Internet or search engines do not show up in traditional economics statistics, which often do not take full account of the full benefits created by saved time or the opportunities access to information brings. But just because something is hard to measure, does not mean that is unimportant.

In this report, we explore how Google is helping people have fun, learn and work more productively:

At home. Google’s products are used by families to free up time and have more fun. Every year, two thirds of adults (64%) use YouTube to figure out how to do DIY, and 60% use it to help them cook. People value online search so much that the average household would rather lose their car, TV licence or even an hour’s sleep a night than access to online search. In total, our estimates suggest that Google services could be creating at least £37 billion in consumer surplus for British families.

Our findings support the growing view among economists that traditional economic metrics such as GDP don’t capture the benefits of the digital economy.

At school. Google and YouTube are now an important part of the education system. We polled parents across the UK and found that every week, more than half of the school pupils in the country (4 million) use Google to help with their homework. As adults, Google opens up new ways to learn about the world: researching the issues lying behind an election, keeping up with local news, or just seeking a faster answer.

Regardless of age, income, level of education or location, Google’s products benefit everyone. 88% of British adults use a search engine at least once a day, which creates a time saving equivalent to an extra bank holiday every year.

At work. Google helps workers and businesses be more productive, better collaborate and reach new customers. At the same time, Google services are enabling a new generation of small businesses from independent app developers to YouTube creators to reach new global audiences. In total, we calculate Google services are driving at least £55 billion in economic value for the UK annually.

We find that digital services underpin the traditional economy. They act as a multiplier: boosting productivity, enabling wholly new types of business and increasing the total size of the economy.

Read the report here.