Heike Belitz

Internationalisation of Industrial R&D

The internationalisation of industrial R&D has been an increasingly debated and analysed topic since the early 1990s. A series of studies analysed this internationalisation from a German perspective. On that basis, this paper shows that while German firms have increased their international activities both in market exploitation and knowledge seeking, this cannot be interpreted as a loss of attractiveness of Germany as a research location. Rather, internationalisation is a two-way street for Germany, and the activity of foreign companies in the country has not only increased, but has also been conducted in knowledgeintensive, future-oriented technological areas. Thus, while differences between sectors and technologies will remain, it will be important in the future to further adjust the innovation system in order to better exploit the potential offered by

International knowledge spillovers through high-tech imports and R&D of foreign-owned firms

The international transmission of knowledge through import spillovers, as a source of Total Factor Productivity (TFP) growth, has received much attention in the literature. We investigate two additional direct channels through which R&D disseminates: the import of high-technology goods and the internationalization of business R&D. Building on an extensive data-set, covering both developing and industrial countries, we add foreign-owned patents as a proxy for R&D activities of foreign multinationals. While we confirm the significance of import spillovers for all countries included, we find additional spillovers for developing countries through the import of high-technology goods. Only developed economies seem to benefit from the diffusion of knowledge that originates through cross-border cooperation in R&D by multinationals.

Financing Patterns of Innovative SMEs and the Perception of Innovation Barriers in Germany

We analyze the role of public support in the financing pattern of R&D in German SMEs and their assessment of financing conditions in the context of other framework conditions for innovation. In Germany, there is a diversity of overall well-funded technology-neutral and technology-specific programs providing grants to R&D and innovation projects. Different types of SMEs access public funding for R&D and innovation activities to varying degrees. Using an extensive sample of 2,700 German SMEs that participated in public R&D promotion programs during the 2005-2010 period, we identify four groups of companies with different patterns of public and private sources of R&D finance, such as own capital, grants, private and subsidized loans. The firms in our sample are generally positive about public financing of R&D in Germany in 2010. Despite the different funding patterns, we find only slight variations in this assessment across the four groups of subsidized SMEs. Nevertheless, medium-sized R&D companies (often with external equity investment) that have to finance the market introduction of innovations without a track record, appear to suffer from deficiencies in the provision of loans. Further, the companies perceive obstacles to innovation primarily in the non-financial sphere, namely the supply of skilled personnel, market regulation and competition conditions. Therefore, future work on innovation policies for SMEs should put greater emphasis on the non-financial external framework conditions for firm R&D and innovative activities.

R&D Internationalization in Multinational Corporations: Some Recent Trends

The internationalization of Research and Development (R&D) in multinational corporations poses a challenge not only to the management of these companies but also to the national technology policy. A particularly controversial topic in the political arena concerns the global competitiveness of locations for research.

Why is TFP growth sectorally concentrated

Research shows that total factor productivity (TFP) growth is weak in European countries. This is inter alia attributed to the fact that substantial TFP growth is limited to a few industries. Because TFP growth is typically understood as technological progress, it is concluded that technology diffusion between sectors in Europe is hampered. We use EU KLEMS data sets to decompose sectoral TFP for nine European countries by means of a Malmquist approach in order to identify potential sources besides technical progress. Applying Harberger diagrams, we describe the sectoral distribution of TFP growth, efficiency gains and losses, economies of scale and technological progress. The analysis reveals that technological progress is quite evenly distributed across sectors in most European countries. The wide scattering of TFP growth is explained by deviating efficiency developments and the unused economies of scale. We conclude that the technology transfer between sectors in most European countries seems to work. Therefore, Europe in general does not need a new technology policy, but a further integration of the markets and a reduction of national market entry barriers. This requires further unification of pan-European standards in fields like trade and crafts codes or consumer protection policies.

Is Technical Progress Sectorally Concentrated?: An Empirical Analysis for Western European Countries

Previous research shows that technical progress at the industry level, measured by sectoral TFP growth, is more localized in continental European countries than in Anglo-Saxon countries. We use EU KLEMS data sets to decompose sectoral TFP for nine European countries by means of a Malmquist approach, in order to separate technical change. Applying Harberger diagrams, we describe the sectoral patterns of technical progress. The analysis reveals that in most European countries technological progress is much more evenly distributed across sectors than TFP.

Trends der Internationalisierung in ausgewählten Schlüsseltechnologien

In diesem Kapitel werden Trends der Internationalisierung der FuE-Aktivitaten multinationaler Unternehmen fur die drei ausgewahlten Technikbereiche beschrieben. Quellen hierfur sind eine statistische Patentanalyse und die Auswertung sekundarstatistischer Daten, die vor allem auf der Ebene einzelner Branchen bzw. Technologien wenig verfugbar sind. Damit sollen zum einen die Unterschiede und Gemeinsamkeiten der Technikbereiche und zum anderen Aussagen zu Stand und Entwicklung der Internationalisierung von FuE in den Technikfeldern herausgearbeitet werden. Die Ergebnisse der statistischen Untersuchungen bilden so den Hintergrund fur die Interviews in den Unternehmen. Sie erlauben die Wertung und Einordnung der Informationen und Einschatzungen aus den einzelnen Unternehmen, die ihrerseits uber die statistischen “Lucken” hinausgehen.

Innovationsstandorte multinationaler Unternehmen und Schlußfolgerungen für die Technologiepolitik

Die Internationalisierung der Unternehmen ist in den Technikbereichen unterschiedlich stark fortgeschritten. Unterschiede im Liberalisierungsgrad des internationalen Handels, der Regulierung von Direktinvestitionsstromen, derregionalen Nachfragespezifik, den GroBenvorteilenin derProduktion und der Internationalisierung technischen Wissens fuhren zu diesen Unterschieden des Internationalisierungsgrads.

Creation of Jobs by Remediation in Eastern Germany Abstract

German unification poses many challenges. Among the most serious ones are unemployment and ecological damages.