Gatekeepers in Regional Networks of Innovators

Strong interaction of innovative actors within a local network is commonly said to increase the region-specific knowledge-stock, leading to a comparative advantage. However, it might also lead to a lock-in situation, if local trajectories are directed towards inferior solutions. Accordingly, it is argued that successful clusters are characterised by the existence of gatekeepers, i.e. actors that generate novelty by drawing on local and external knowledge. We study the role and characteristics of gatekeepers within regional innovation systems by applying social network analysis based on patent data for four East-German regions. The regional networks appear to be significantly different with respect to the degree of interaction and with respect to their outward orientation. Concerning the characteristics of gatekeepers, we find that absorptive capacity is more important than size. Public research organisations serve the functions of a gatekeeper to a higher degree than private actors.Innovator networks; Gatekeeper; R&D co-operation; Mobility

Cooperation and Specialization in German Technology Regions

We investigate cooperative behavior within technology regions in patenting activities. Case studies of local innovation systems point out certain characteristics fruitful to innovation and regional growth but often pronounce historical singularities as major influence. We provide evidence on the same theoretical basis in an econometric study. Based on a theoretical discussion of research cooperation hypotheses are derived which relate a regions technological characteristics to that regions account of research cooperation. Patent data are used to define the technological specialization of German regions and identify cooperations within and between them. Most cooperations tend to take place in modestly specialized regions, indicating a need for similar technological capabilities between partner firms.

Structural properties of cooperation networks in Germany: From basic to applied research

Economists pay more and more attention to knowledge networks and drivers of their development. Consequently, a rich literature emerged analyzing factors explaining the emergence of intra-organizational links. Despite substantial work focusing on the dyad level, only little is known about how and why (global) network structures differ between technologies or industries. The study is based on a new data source on subsidized R&D cooperation in Germany, which is presented in detail and discussed with respect to other types of relational data. A comparison of networks within ten technologies allows us to identify systematic differences between basic and applied research networks.R&D subsidies, network, cooperation, Foerderkatalog, Germany

Public Research in Regional Networks of Innovators: A Comparative Study of Four East-German Regions

Universities and public research organizations are said to be an integrative and essential element of a functioning innovation system as they play a vital role not only in the generation of new technological knowledge, but also in its diffusion. We analyse four East German local networks of innovators which differ in structure and innovative performance and investigate the characteristic role of public research within these local systems by applying methods of social network analysis. Our results show that universities and non-university institutions of public research are key actors in all regional networks of innovators both in terms of patent output and in terms of centrality of their position in the networks. Further we find the 'thicker' networks to have more central public research organizations. Higher centrality of public research compared to private actors may be due to the fact that universities are explicitly designed to give away their knowledge and that they increasingly face the need to raise external funds.Innovator Networks; Public research; R+D Cooperation; Mobility

The Network of Innovators in Jena: An Application of Social Network Analysis

We apply social network analysis methods to describe the evolution of the innovator network of Jena, Germany in the period from 1995 to 2001. We find this evolution to be directed towards an increasing focus on core competencies of the local innovation system. Further we analyze the network resulting from R&D cooperations and explain - by means of network regression techniques - that the job mobility of scientists and the technological overlap between the actors, rather than past cooperations, can best predict the resulting structure. We also observe an increasing importance of the university while the former "Kombinate" begin to lose their prominent role.Innovator Networks, Network Regression, Local Innovation Systems, R+D Cooperation, Research University

Inventor networks in emerging key technologies: Information technology vs. semiconductors

We analyze the development of the German knowledge base measured by co-classifications of patents by German inventors and relate this technological development to changes in the structure of the underlying inventor networks. Our central hypothesis states that technologies which become more central to the knowledge base are also characterized by a higher connectedness of the inventor network. We exemplify our theoretical considerations in a comparative study of two patenting fields - information technology and semiconductors. It turns out that information technology shows the highest increases in patents but shows no of a key technology. Contrary, semiconductors develops towards a key technology, despite a moderate increase in the number of patents. The dynamic analysis of inventor networks in both fields shows an increasing connectedness and the emergence of a large component in semiconductors but not in information technology, which is in line with our expectations

How general conditions affect regional innovation systems: The case of the two Germanys

We compare two leading regional innovation systems (RIS) in East Germany with two RIS in West Germany of about the same size and internal settlement structure. Our analyses show that differences in the performance between the regions cannot easily be related to the structural properties of the respective innovation networks because divergent general economic conditions in the two parts of the country as well as the integration of regions into their neighboring spatial environment play a rather dominant role. Overall, our analysis clearly shows that an analysis of RIS should account for the general economic conditions as well as for the position of a region in its spatial environment. Focusing just on the respective region is not enough

Interaction structures in local innovation systems

The flow of knowledge through interaction between innovative actors is central to the systemic view of innovation. We review the literature on interaction and innovator networks with a focus on regional aspects. To illustrate the relevance of these relations, we apply social network analysis methods to describe the evolution of the innovator network of Jena, Germany in the period from 1995 to 2001. During this period, the network is characterised by growth in the number of patents, actors and relations, with central positions of public research. The evolution is directed towards an increasing focus on core competencies of the network

Structural properties of cooperation networks in Germany: From basic to applied research

Economists pay more and more attention to knowledge networks and drivers of their development. Consequently, a rich literature emerged analyzing factors explaining the emergence of intra-organizational links. Despite substantial work focusing on the dyad level, only little is known about how and why (global) network structures differ between technologies or industries. The study is based on a new data source on subsidized R&D cooperation in Germany, which is presented in detail and discussed with respect to other types of relational data. A comparison of networks within ten technologies allows us to identify systematic differences between basic and applied research networks

Research in regional networks of innovators: a comparative study of four East-German regions

Universities and public research organisations play a vital role not only in the generation of new technological knowledge, but also in its diffusion. We analyse four East German local networks of innovators which differ in structure and innovative performance and investigate the characteristic role of public research within these local systems of innovation by applying methods of social network analysis on patent data. Our results show that public research organisations are key actors in all regional networks of innovators both in terms of patent output and in terms of centrality of their position in the networks. Further we find the 'thicker' networks to have more central public research organisations