SUMMARY
The objective of this paper is to show how the global value chain (GVC) concept has spread since the early 2000s. The article assumes that GVC is no longer just a concept or an analytical framework; rather that a new type of business unit has emerged. The article is based on the literature comparison which served to search the main decision-making criteria. The article found that the main decision-making criteria are based on the economies of a network, behind which the spirit of informationalism can be found. The connection between Powell’s stylized models of markets, hierarchy, networks and Gereffi’s theoretical framework of governance structure at GVCs was discovered. The Powell-Gereffi combined model represents clearly described modalities of governance. The paper asks whether the entire economic system is covered by the Powell-Gereffi division. Kornai and Braudel both recognized the routine functioning of the basic-economy, without which the whole economy would lose its stability. It is necessary to formulate how this vegetative or infra-economy relates to the GVCs and to our globalized world economy. The article interprets the Smile Curve, and determines a possible way of measuring the distortion of smile.