ABSTRACT
The Database of Business Enterprise is a file of machine-readable records containing two types of information about US business establishments. The ability to match one database with another facilitates computerized information exchanges, which Ne at the heart of database development. The Economie Information Systems (EIS) Database does not purport to offer complete coverage of the US economy. One of the most striking characteristics of the American business enterprise structure is corporate concentration, or the dominant position of a relatively small number of firms in most markets. The maintenance of the EIS Database of 360,000 plus records requires deletions, additions, and changes involving over 25,000 records each quarter. The EIS Database greatly facilitates the choice of samples large enough to meet any desired level of accuracy, particularly in association with the facts on industrial concentration. An additional invaluable information resource is the statistical tabulations of the Census Bureau, which offer the crucial "controls" that serve as indicators of database accuracy.
