20點 What is the service economy?

Service economy can refer to one or both of two recent economic developments. One is the increased importance of the service sector in industrialized economies. Services account for a higher percentage of US GDP than 20 years ago. The current list of Fortune 500 companies contains more service companies and fewer manufacturers than in previous decades.

The term is also used to refer to the relative importance of service in a product offering. That is, products today have a higher service component than in previous decades. In the management literature this is referred to as the servitization of products. Virtually every product today has a service component to it. The old dichotomy between product and service has been replaced by a service-product continuum. Many products are being transformed into services.

Full cost accounting and most accounting reform and monetary reform measures are usually thought to be impossible to achieve without a good model of the service economy.

Environmental effects of the service economy
This is seen, especially in green economics and more specific theories within it such as Natural Capitalism, as having these benefits:

Much easier integration with state services under globalization, e.g. meat inspection is a service that is assumed within a product price, but which can vary quite drastically with jurisdiction, with some serious effects.
Association of goods movements in commodity markets with negative commodity (representing emissions or other pollution, biodiversity loss, biosecurity risk) public bads so that no commodity can be traded without assuming responsibility for damage done by its extraction, processing, shipping, trading and sale - its comprehensive outcome
Easier integration with urban ecology and industrial ecology modelling
Making it easier to relate to the Experience Economy of actual quality of life decisions made by human beings based on assumptions about service, and integrating economics better with marketing theory about brand value e.g. products are purchased for their assumed reliability in some known process. This assumes that the user's experience with the brand (implying a service they expect) is far more important than its technical characteristics
Product stewardship is the inclusion of waste disposal measures in the distribution chain of a product. That is, planning for, and if necessary paying for, the sustainable disposal when design and distribute a product.

Those who advocate it are concerned with the later phases of product lifecycle and the comprehensive outcome of the whole production process. It is considered a pre-requisite to a strict service economy interpretation of (fictional, national, legal) "commodity" and "product" relationships.

The most familiar example is the container deposit charged for a deposit bottle. One pays a fee to buy the bottle, separately from the fee to buy what it contains. If one returns the bottle, the fee is returned, and the supplier must return the bottle for re-use or recycling. If not, one has paid the fee, and presumably this can pay for landfill or litter control measures that dispose of say a broken bottle.

However, the principle is applied very broadly beyond bottles to paint and automobile parts such as tires. When purchasing paint or tires in many places, one simultaneously pays for the disposal of the toxic waste they become. In some countries, such as Germany, law requires attention to the comprehensive outcome of the whole extraction, production, distribution, use and waste of a product, and holds those profiting from these legally responsible for any outcome along the way. This is also the trend in the UK and EU generally. In the United States, predictably, the issue has been confronted via class action lawsuits that attempt to hold companies liable for the environmental impact of their products.

An economic growth of a society or an area or a country is depended on the income or revenue mostly generating from the activities of one party offering any benefit to another party. The benefit is essentially intangible and does not result in the ownership of anything. In our society, for instance the business activities relating to retailing, tourist facilities, catering & restaurant and hotel facilities are belonged to service economies. Macau is a typical service economy that offers the facilities mostly for tourists such as gambling, catering, accommodation, sightseeing and the like. There is less likely found industrial production, or the income of this sector could not contribute and support its expenditure for long run.

The characteristics of service in the economy, they are produced and consumed at the same time and can not be separated from their providers, whether the providers are people or machines; they cannot be tastes, seen, felt, heard, or smelted before they are bought; they cannot be stored for later sale or use; their quality may vary greatly, depending on who provide them, and when, where, and how. Another instance, service quality may vary by different domestic helpers.
However, a service may also adjoin to a physical product in a product market, for many instances, the after sale service is the maintenance of mainframe computer, industrial tools & equipment, cars, electronic appliances, software and the like. This is an extremely valuable service support capability in industry, commerce and household who expect quick solutions because downtime is very expensive for those valuable products

2006-10-18 11:46:34 補充：
Government figures for your reference HK GDP by Economic Activity in 2000/2004/2005 in Billion HK$1255.3/1203/1254.5Shared by (all in percentage)Primary sector:agriculture & fishing 0.1/0.1/0.1mining & quarrying 0/0/0

2006-10-18 11:47:22 補充：
Secondary sector:manufacturing 5.4/3.7/3.5electricity, gas and water 2.9/3.2/3.2construction 4.9/3.7/3.2

2006-10-18 11:48:10 補充：
Important to youTertiary Sector -- the total of the service sector 86.6/89.3/90Includes from (a) to (e)(a) wholesale, retail, import & export trades, restaurants & hotels 24.6/25.7/27.52

2006-10-18 11:48:58 補充：
(b) transport, storage & communication 9.5/9.8/10.1(c) financing, insurance, real estate & business services 21.4/20.9/21.3 (d) community, social & personal services 19.9/21.8/20.9(e) ownership of premises 11.3/11.2/10.2

2006-10-18 11:55:27 補充：
correctionmining & quarry is not 0, but they are less than 0.05% in the three years

2006-10-18 12:21:26 補充：
Sorry for errorThe three year figures are 2000 /2003/ 2004 instead of 2000/ 20004/ 2005

Service industries are the major driving force of the world economy, with one-quarter of cross-border trade already in services. Hong Kong has developed into a service-oriented economy, with the services sector contributing 90% of the GDP in 2004 and employing 86% of the working population in 2005 (or respectively 96.4% and 94.4% if construction and utilities services are included). In external trade, Hong Kong's exports of services now exceed than of its domestic manufactures.

The Hong Kong Coalition of Service Industries was founded in 1990 by the Hong Kong General Chamber of Commerce. It is the Chamber's service policy think tank. With representatives from more than 50 service sectors, the HKCSI is the major private sector voice for Hong Kong's service industries.

The earnings from the service industries can help to correct balance of trade deficits in Hong Kong and it can also raise the level of employment and the living standard in Hong Kong.

Service industries are very important to Hong Kong, so we should equip ourselves to accept the challenges from the service industries. In our web site, we will provide you with the latest and useful information about the Air Services; after taking a look on our page, you may set up a long-term planning yourself to become a professional in the aspect of air services, enjoy your colourful future.


Aim of HKCSI

To promote the continuing development and competitiveness of Hong Kong's service industries.

To achieve this, the HKCSI seeks to:

promote the development of a "service friendly environment" in Hong Kong.
provide a focal point for liaison with Government.
establish and maintain cooperation between members of Hong Kong's service industries for the purpose of achieving common goals.
represent the interests of service industries in Hong Kong and to formulate policies and make submissions on behalf of members of the Hong Kong Coalition of Service Industries.
promote fair, effective and comprehensive international and multilateral rules for trade in services.
contribute to the opening of the services sector of the Mainland
establish and develop links with counterpart organisations elsewhere.