Gard Hopsdal Hansen

Same Sea, Different Ponds: Cross-Sectorial Knowledge Spillovers in the North Sea

Abstract Knowledge spillovers are crucial to innovation and upgrading, but it is largely unclear what knowledge spillovers are made of and how they actually happen. The importance of Marshall–Arrow–Romer vs. Jacobs externalities is also a debated matter, whereas the concept of “related variety” has recently come to occupy a middle-ground position. However, the relatedness concept is ambiguous in terms of operationalization and emphasizes codified knowledge on behalf of other knowledge resources that are important for innovation, particularly if firms cross into new sectors. This paper sheds light on the “black box” concepts of knowledge spillovers and relatedness by exploring cross-sectorial transfers from the mature offshore oil and gas sector into the emerging offshore wind industry. A qualitative research design allows for a more nuanced understanding of the contents of knowledge spillovers and (un)relatedness between sectors.

Taking the mess back to business: studying international business from behind

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to address the role of the qualitative researcher in international business (IB) studies and the need for a local perspective to better comprehend the complexity and consequences of international economic activity.Design/methodology/approach – Argues that the internationalization process is constructed at the doorstep where local and international actors meet and should thus be studied from both angles. The article provides some empirical examples and anecdotes from research in China to underpin the argumentation. The questions are discussed in the voices of “the Geographer” and “the Explorer” – characters borrowed from Saint‐Exuperys novel The Little Prince.Findings – Research on IB is overly oriented towards the activities of international actors. More knowledge on how local actors evaluate and act upon international initiatives and the relations between entrants and locals may provide better understanding of realities and dynamics of actors in both camps.Practica...

Barriers to Path Creation: The Case of Offshore Wind Power in Norway.

abstract Although economic geography has made considerable progress in explaining the emergence of new industrial development paths, a number of issues have yet to be sufficiently explored. The purpose of this article is to contribute to economic geography research on path creation by developing a conceptual framework that specifies key conditions and reinforcing mechanisms for path creation, on the one hand, and barriers to the materialization of such conditions and mechanisms, on the other hand. As such, the framework moves beyond firm-centric perspectives and argues that path creation needs to be understood as a collective endeavor incorporating both firm and nonfirm actors. By implication, this necessitates an understanding of the broader contexts that shape path creation processes, including how the dynamics of an emerging path are affected by the dynamics of established paths. The authors employ this framework to analyze Norway’s offshore wind power (OWP) industry. Their analysis reveals that an initial enabling context for OWP path creation turned into more constrained conditions. Similar to findings from a number of other studies, they identify branching between related sectors as a primary path creation mechanism. However, they find that this mechanism is vulnerable to shifting contextual conditions, which for various reasons resulted in the studied emerging path losing resources and legitimacy, thus implying potential negative path interdependence. The authors also identify barriers to path creation in the institutional environment, particularly in terms of lack of policy coherence in support for key resource formation processes that are pivotal for path creation processes to generate sustained momentum.

Louis Vuitton in the bazaar: Negotiating the value of counterfeit goods in Shanghai's Xiangyang market

Much work on counterfeiting takes the perspective of brand holders and focuses on strategies for restricting the infringement of their intellectual property rights (IPR). This article takes a different approach. Based on long-term ethnographic fieldwork in a market bazaar in Shanghai, the article examines the way in which market participants negotiate the value of counterfeit goods. Brand holders attempt to control the valuation of branded goods, which are usually traded in fixed-price markets. Counterfeit goods, on the other hand, are subject to intensive bargaining in Chinese bazaar-type markets. Identifying different types of value that market participants refer to in their attempts to manipulate prices, the article argues that counterfeit goods and their markets create a more active role for both vendors and consumers in negotiating, denaturalising and temporarily re-fixing the value of goods.