Is Silence Golden? Patents versus Secrecy at the Firm Level

In the 1990s, patenting schemes changed in many respects: upcoming new technologies accelerated the shift from price competition towards competition based on technical inventions, a worldwide surge in patenting took place, and the ‘patent thicket’ arose as a consequence of strategic patenting. This study analyzes the importance of patenting versus secrecy as an effective alternative to protect intellectual property in the inventions’ market phase. The sales figure with new products is introduced as a new measure for the importance of tools to protect IP among product innovating firms. Focusing on German manufacturing in 2000, it turns out that patents are important to protect intellectual property in the market, whereas secrecy seems to be rather important for inventions that are not commercialized yet.Innovation; Appropriation; Patents; Secrecy

Is Silence Golden? Patents versus Secrecy at the Firm Level

In the 1990s, patenting schemes changed in many respects: upcoming new technologies accelerated the shift from price competition towards competition based on technical inventions, a worldwide surge in patenting took place, and the ?patent thicket? arose as a consequence of strategic patenting. This study analyzes the importance of patenting versus secrecy as an effective alternative to protect intellectual property in the inventions? market phase. The sales figure with new products is introduced as a new measure for the importance of IP protection tools among product innovating firms. Focusing on the German manufacturing in 2000, it turns out that patents are important to protect intellectual property in the market, whereas secrecy seems to be rather important for early-stage inventions. --Innovation,Appropriation,Patents,Secrecy

R&D and Subsidies at the Firm Level: An Application of Parametric and Semi-Parametric Two-Step Selection Models

This paper analyzes the effects of public subsidies on R&D expenditure in the German manufacturing sector. The focus is on the question whether public R&D funding stimulates or crowds out private investment. Cross sectional data at the firm level is used. By applying parametric and semiparametric selection models, it turns out that public funding increases firms' R&D expenditure. Altough the magnitude of the treatment effect depends on the assumptions imposed by the particular selection model.Innovation, Public R&D Subsidies, Policy Evaluation, Paramteric and Semiparametric Two-Step Selection Models

Did Concentration on Core Competencies Drive Merger and Acquisition Activities in the 1990s? Empirical Evidence for Germany

In the context of increasing globalization of markets, merger and acquisition activities in the 1990s are said to be driven by reorganization processes with respect to concentration on firms? core competencies in order to increase or maintain market power in international markets. This paper empirically investigates a sample of German domestic mergers in the 1990s to detect the impact of technology and market relatedness on the choice of the merging partner. Results from a conditional logit model show that firms prefer a merging partner within the same industry and with a related technological profile. These findings approve the hypothesis that mergers in the 1990s were undertaken to concentrate on core competencies. --M&A,Technological Firm Performance,Market Relatedness

Did concentration on core competencies drive merger and acquisition activities in the 1990s? Empirical evidence for Germany.

In the context of increasing globalization of markets, merger and acquisition activities in the 1990s are said to be driven by reorganization processes with respect to concentration on firms' core competencies in order to increase or maintain market power in international markets. This paper empirically investigates a sample of German domestic mergers in the 1990s to detect the impact of technology and market relatedness on the choice of the merging partner. Results from a conditional logit model show that firms prefer a merging partner within the same industry and with a related technological profile. These findings approve the hypothesis that mergers in the 1990s were undertaken to concentrate on core competencies.Choice; Domestic; Firms; Germany; Globalization; Impact; Industry; International; International markets; Logit; Market; Market power; Market relatedness; Markets; Mergers; Model; Order; Processes; Research; Technology;

Formal and Informal Technology Transfer from Academia to Industry: Complementarity Effects and Innovation Performance

Literature has identified formal and informal channels in university technology transfer. While formal technology transfer typically involves a legal contract on a patent or on collaborative research activities, informal transfer channels refer to personal contacts and hence to the tacit dimension of knowledge transfer. Research is, however, scarce regarding the interaction of formal and informal transfer mechanisms. In this paper, we analyze whether these activities are mutually reinforcing, i.e. complementary. Our analysis is based on a comprehensive dataset of more than 2,000 German manufacturing firms. We perform direct and indirect tests for the complementarity of formal and informal technology transfer. Our results confirm a complementary relationship: using both transfer channels contributes to higher innovation performance. The management of the firm should therefore strive to maintain close informal relationships with universities to realize the full potential of formal technology transfer. --University technology transfer,complementarity,innovation performance

Building and Blocking: The two faces of techology acquisition.

firm acquisitions; technology; patents; blocking patents;

Export versus FDI in german manufacturing: firm performance and participation in International markets.

Manufacturing; Firm performance; Performance; Participation; International; International markets; Markets; Market;

Firm Acquisitions and Technology Strategy: Corporate versus Private Equity Investors

Over the last few years, worldwide mergers and acquisitions (M&A) have increased sharply both in terms of value and volume. This development has not only been driven by corporate acquirers but also to an increasing extent by private equity investors. In this paper, we analyze differences in acquisition motives for corporate and private equity investors. We pay particular attention to the importance of technological assets in M&A transactions and distinguish between the technological value of patents and their potential to block competitors in technology markets. Our empirical results for European firm acquisitions in the period from 1999 to 2003 show that both corporate and private equity investors pay a higher price for target firms with valuable patents. However, patents with a potential to block technology competitors seem to be only of interest to corporate investors, especially if these are closely related to the patent portfolio of the acquirer. --M&A,technology,patents,corporate and private equity investors