The COVID-19 pandemic has upended daily life, introducing new social dynamics and consumption patterns. It has marked a turning point in many areas of our personal and collective life. One of the sectors that has been most affected is the digital economy.
The crisis caused by COVID-19 has accelerated digital economy trends that were not anticipated for another five to ten years. In some respects, it could be said that the pandemic has been a perfect storm, forcing digitalization in a wide array of areas such as work, consumption, social relations, or leisure.
One example is e-commerce. According to a study by IAB Spain,1 half of the Spanish consumers increased their online purchases by 51% during the pandemic. The Adobe Digital Economy Index2 shows that global e-commerce in 2020 reached levels that would not have been attained for another five years under normal conditions.
This report aims to present the extent of COVID-19’s impact on platform economy sectors in an aggregate manner and identify significant actions adopted by participating platforms to adapt to the new reality. The report pinpoints trends, impacts and actions based on conversations and information shared by the platforms, and displays the data aggregated by sector. It should be noted that the information cannot be extrapolated or generalized to an entire sector or geography.
A total of 34 platforms participated in this study.
