Finding Business "Idols": A New Model to Accelerate Start-Ups

Explores a novel approach to finding high-tech entrepreneurial enterprises that is transforming how high-tech entrepreneurs are identified, their businesses launched, and the growth of their operations accelerated

Indicators of university–industry knowledge transfer performance and their implication for universities: evidence from the United Kingdom

The issue of what indicators are most appropriate in order to measure the performance of universities in knowledge transfer (KT) activities remains relatively under-investigated. The main aim of this paper is to identify and discuss the limitations to the current measurements of university-industry KT performance, and propose some directions for improvement. We argue that university-industry KT can unfold in many ways and impact many stakeholders, and that, especially in highly differentiated university systems, choosing indicators focused on a narrow range of activities and impacts might limit the ability of universities to accurately represent their KT performance. Therefore, KT indicators should include a variety of activities and reflect a variety of impacts, so as to allow comparability between different institutions and avoid the creation of undesirable behavioural incentives. To illustrate these issues empirically, we discuss the case of the United Kingdom’s Higher Education –Business and Community Interaction (HE-BCI) survey

Vertical Separation of Telecommunications Networks: Evidence from Five Countries

The widespread adoption of mandatory unbundling in telecommunications markets has led to growing interest in mandatory functional separation, i.e., separation of upstream network operations from downstream retail operations. Since 2002, vertical separation has been implemented in five OECD countries: Australia, Italy, New Zealand, Sweden, and the United Kingdom. In 2008, the International Telecommunications Union noted a tremendous amount of interest in functional separation around the world; and, in April 2009, the European Parliament held its second reading on a new regulatory framework that embraces functional separation as an exceptional measure. While the U.S. does not currently require unbundling of broadband telecommunications networks, at least one influential group is advocating both unbundling and vertical separation for U.S. network operators. In this context, this study examines mandatory vertical separation in telecommunications markets from both a theoretical and an empirical perspective. The theoretical case against vertical separation is very strong, predicting in particular that mandated separation will discourage innovation and investment in new technologies. The empirical evidence tends to confirm these predictions, suggesting that overall, vertical separation is likely to impose significant costs without measurably increasing broadband penetration

Vertical Separation of Telecommunications Networks: Evidence from Five Countries

The widespread adoption of mandatory unbundling in telecommunications markets has led to growing interest in mandatory functional separation, i.e., separation of upstream network operations from downstream retail operations. Since 2002, vertical separation has been implemented in five OECD countries: Australia, Italy, New Zealand, Sweden, and the United Kingdom. In 2008, the International Telecommunications Union noted a tremendous amount of interest in functional separation around the world; and, in April 2009, the European Parliament held its second reading on a new regulatory framework that embraces functional separation as an exceptional measure. While the U.S. does not currently require unbundling of broadband telecommunications networks, at least one influential group is advocating both unbundling and vertical separation for U.S. network operators. In this context, this study examines mandatory vertical separation in telecommunications markets from both a theoretical and an empirical perspective. The theoretical case against vertical separation is very strong, predicting in particular that mandated separation will discourage innovation and investment in new technologies. The empirical evidence tends to confirm these predictions, suggesting that overall, vertical separation is likely to impose significant costs without measurably increasing broadband penetration

Small molecule anionophores promote transmembrane anion permeation matching CFTR activity

Anion selective ionophores, anionophores, are small molecules capable of facilitating the transmembrane transport of anions. Inspired in the structure of natural product prodigiosin, four novel anionophores 1a-d, including a 1,2,3-triazole group, were prepared. These compounds proved highly efficient anion exchangers in model phospholipid liposomes. The changes in the hydrogen bond cleft modified the anion transport selectivity exhibited by these compounds compared to prodigiosin and suppressed the characteristic high toxicity of the natural product. Their activity as anionophores in living cells was studied and chloride efflux and iodine influx from living cells mediated by these derivatives was demonstrated. These compounds were shown to permeabilize cellular membranes to halides with efficiencies close to the natural anion channel CFTR at doses that do not compromise cellular viability. Remarkably, optimal transport efficiency was measured in the presence of pH gradients mimicking those found in the airway epithelia of Cystic Fibrosis patients. These results support the viability of developing small molecule anionophores as anion channel protein surrogates with potential applications in the treatment of conditions such as Cystic Fibrosis derived from the malfunction of natural anion transport mechanisms.European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme under grant agreement No. 667079, La Marató de TV3 Foundation (20132730), Consejería de Educación de la Junta de Castilla y León (Projects BU340U13 and BU092U16

University–industry collaboration: using meta-rules to overcome barriers to knowledge transfer

This is the final version of the article. Available from Springer Verlag via the DOI in this record.University–industry knowledge transfer is an important source wealth of creation for all partners; however, the practical management of this activity within universities is often hampered by procedural rigidity either through the absence of decision-making protocols to reconcile conflicting priorities or through the inconsistent implementation of existing policies. This is problematic, since it can impede operational effectiveness, prevent inter-organisational knowledge-creation and hamper organisational learning. This paper addresses this issue by adopting a cross-discipline approach and presenting meta-rules as a solution to aid organisational decision making. It is proposed that meta-rules can help resolve tensions arising from conflicting priorities between academics, knowledge transfer offices and industry and help facilitate strategic alignment of processes and policies within and between organisations. This research contributes to the growing debate on the strategic challenges of managing knowledge transfer and presents meta-rules as a practical solution to facilitate strategic alignment of internal and external stakeholder tensions. Meta-rules has previously only been applied in a computer intelligence context however, this research proves the efficacy of meta rules in a university–industry knowledge transfer context. This research also has practical implications for knowledge transfer office managers who can use meta-rules to help overcome resource limitations, conflicting priorities and goals of diverse internal and external stakeholders

Regulation of Interstate Wine Shipments

Economists argue that there is no clear economic rationale for regulating interstate shipments of wine.

The Copyright Term Extension Act of 1998: An Economic Analysis

This brief provides an economic analysis of the main feature of the Copyright Term Extension Act of 1998 ('CTEA'), a twenty-year extension of the copyright term for existing and future works. Taken as a whole, the authors believe that it is highly unlikely that the economic benefits from copyright extension under the CTEA outweigh the additional costs.Technology and Industry

Rules for Growth: Promoting Innovation and Growth Through Legal Reform

The United States economy is struggling to recover from its worst economic downturn since the Great Depression. After several huge doses of conventional macroeconomic stimulus - deficit-spending and monetary stimulus - policymakers are understandably eager to find innovative no-cost ways of sustaining growth both in the short and long runs. In response to this challenge, the Kauffman Foundation convened a number of America’s leading legal scholars and social scientists during the summer of 2010 to present and discuss their ideas for changing legal rules and policies to promote innovation and accelerate U.S. economic growth. This meeting led to the publication of Rules for Growth: Promoting Innovation and Growth Through Legal Reform, a comprehensive and groundbreaking volume of essays prescribing a new set of growth-promoting policies for policymakers, legal scholars, economists, and business men and women. Some of the top Rules include: • Reforming U.S. immigration laws so that more high-skilled immigrants can launch businesses in the United States. • Improving university technology licensing practices so university-generated innovation is more quickly and efficiently commercialized. • Moving away from taxes on income that penalize risk-taking, innovation, and employment while shifting toward a more consumption-based tax system that encourages saving that funds investment. In addition, the research tax credit should be redesigned and made permanent. • Overhauling local zoning rules to facilitate the formation of innovative companies. • Urging judges to take a more expansive view of flexible business contracts that are increasingly used by innovative firms. • Urging antitrust enforcers and courts to define markets more in global terms to reflect contemporary realities, resist antitrust enforcement from countries with less sound antitrust regimes, and prohibit industry trade protection and subsidies. • Reforming the intellectual property system to allow for a post-grant opposition process and address the large patent application backlog by allowing applicants to pay for more rapid patent reviews. • Authorizing corporate entities to form digitally and use software as a means for setting out agreements and bylaws governing corporate activities. The collective essays in the book propose a new way of thinking about the legal system that should be of interest to policymakers and academic scholars alike. Moreover, the ideas presented here, if embodied in law, would augment a sustained increase in U.S. economic growth, improving living standards for U.S. residents and for many in the rest of the world