Suchergebnisse

Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to identify major developments in corporate innovation. The author focuses on the behavioral differences between MNEs from developed and emerging markets in the way they locate their R&D activities.


Design/methodology/approach
With the help of descriptive statistics, the paper identifies major trends in the global distribution of innovative activity. The novel source of patent statistics, Patent Cooperation Treaty (PCT) applications, is used as a proxy for innovative effort by leading MNEs. This paper is among the first attempts to analyze the global geography of innovation based on PCT statistics.


Findings
The analysis underscores differences in the patenting activities of MNEs from emerging and advanced markets. It confirms that innovative activity by major MNEs remains largely home-based, which contradicts the premise of the global nature of corporate innovation. At the same time, the growing importance of China as a research center attracts MNEs from a variety of developed markets. Emerging MNEs also file patent applications domestically. Most Chinese R&D subsidiaries of MNEs from advanced economies in our sample do not pursue technological specialization, as they produce patents in the same technological areas as the corporate headquarters or other subsidiaries.


Originality/value
A number of assumptions about the innovation geography of major MNEs were empirically tested. An attempt was made to fill the gaps in our understanding of innovation strategies pursued by MNEs in emerging markets. The author uses the concept of MNEs as meta-integrators to explain the observed dynamics. Its explanatory power is more convincing as applied to our data than the concept of national systems of innovation.

The objective of this paper is to investigate the effects of institutions on national rates of inventive activity. Invention, part of the innovation process, is acknowledged as one of the driving forces behind economic growth, and patent statistics are frequently used as a measurable indicator of inventive output. Thus this paper explores the relationship between national patent statistics and measures of institutional quality. As a result of our research, the effect of the "threshold of inventive activity" was observed. This effect demonstrates that when countries reach a certain level of institutional development and attain a general institutional climate conducive to inventive activity, the number of patent applications begins to sharply increase. The paper contributes to the body of evidence that confirms that a combination of fundamental institutions like the rule of law or freedom of expression, which are not necessarily aimed at boosting innovation, create an overall environment conducive to patenting. We demonstrate that "mid-range emerging economies", including those in Central and Eastern Europe (CEE), where the quality of institutions is lagging behind more developed counterparts and/or their influence is weak or sporadic, have not yet reached the threshold of inventive activity yet. However, those CEE countries that have acceded to the European Union first have made visible progress with respect to institutional quality and invention. ; Celem artykułu jest ukazanie znaczenia instytucji w kształtowaniu poziomu narodowej działalności wynalazczej. "Wynalazczość", jako część składowa procesu innowacji, mierzona liczbą przyznanych patentów, uważana jest za jedną z sił napędzających wzrost gospodarczy. W ujęciu ekonomii instytucji, czynnikiem stymulującym wzrost gospodarczy są sprawne instytucje. Stąd artykuł bada zależność między krajową zdolnością patentową, a jakością krajowych instytucji. W wyniku przeprowadzonej analizy, zaobserwowano wystąpienie efektu "progu działalności wynalazczej". Efekt ten obrazuje, że w momencie osiągnięcia przez kraj określonego poziomu rozwoju otoczenia instytucjonalnego, w rezultacie poprawy klimatu sprzyjającego powstawaniu innowacji, liczba zgłaszanych wniosków patentowych zaczyna szybko wzrastać. Artykuł wzbogaca międzynarodowy dorobek naukowy, potwierdzając znaczenie fundamentalnych instytucji, jak rządy prawa i wolność wypowiedzi, w stymulowaniu krajowej innowacyjności. Ukazano, że kraje na średnim poziomie rozwoju, w tym gospodarki Europy Środkowo-Wschodniej, w których jakość instytucji nadal nie osiągnęła poziomu krajów najwyżej rozwiniętych, nie przekroczyły jeszcze "progu działalności wynalazczej". Jednak w tych spośród państw regionu, które jako pierwsze przystąpiły do Unii Europejskiej, w wyniku harmonizacji otoczenia instytucjonalnego, nastąpiła intensyfikacja działalności patentowej.

The objective of this paper is to investigate the effects of institutions on national rates of inventive activity. Invention, part of the innovation process, is acknowledged as one of the driving forces behind economic growth, and patent statistics are frequently used as a measurable indicator of inventive output. Thus this paper explores the relationship between national patent statistics and measures of institutional quality. As a result of our research, the effect of the "threshold of inventive activity" was observed. This effect demonstrates that when countries reach a certain level of institutional development and attain a general institutional climate conducive to inventive activity, the number of patent applications begins to sharply increase. The paper contributes to the body of evidence that confirms that a combination of fundamental institutions like the rule of law or freedom of expression, which are not necessarily aimed at boosting innovation, create an overall environment conducive to patenting. We demonstrate that 'mid-range emerging economies',2 including those in Central and Eastern Europe3 (CEE), where the quality of institutions is lagging behind more developed counterparts and/or their influence is weak or sporadic, have not yet reached the threshold of inventive activity yet. However, those CEE countries that have acceded to the European Union first have made visible progress with respect to institutional quality and invention.