Nicholas S. Vonortas

Research Joint Ventures

Inter-firm collaboration is not new. What is new is that such collaboration has exploded during the past couple of decades, in parallel to the intensification of international competition. Moreover, the nature of collaboration has changed, shifting from peripheral interests to the very core functions of the corporation, and from equity to non-equity forms of collaboration. Importantly, cooperation focusing on the generation, exchange, and/or adaptation of new technologies has risen at very fast rates. Research joint ventures, the focus of this paper, belong in the latter category. Copyright Blackwell Publishing Ltd, 2003.

Univeristy-Industry Cooperation in the Context of the European Framework Programmes

This paper investigates the characteristics of university-industry collaboration in a large set of research joint ventures (RJVs) established in the context of the European Framework Programmes over a period of fourteen years. The share of university-industry RJVs is found to have gradually increased. Such RJVs have tended to be relatively larger in terms of participant numbers. Universities from peripheral European regions have been rather active in the examined RJVs. Firms cooperate with Universities to exploit research synergies leading to cost savings or improvements in R&D productivity, keeping up with major technological developments, and sharing R&D cost. Firms reported that the most important benefit from such collaboration has been the positive impact on their knowledge base.

Inter-firm cooperation with imperfectly appropriable research

Abstract Inter-firm collaboration in pre-competitive research is not always beneficial. Rather, its effectiveness in raising social benefits relative to a non-cooperative setup depends on both the nature of the agreement and the technological and market conditions of the industry in question. Joint ventures that simply allow members to coordinate their actions in pre-competitive research can restore firm incentives for both pre-competitive research and development in the presence of high knowledge spillovers and poor opportunities for innovation. Joint ventures which additionally improve the dissemination of information among member firms raise social benefits whenever the opportunities for innovation are not exceptionally good, even in the presence of relatively insignificant spillovers.

Strategic Research Partnerships: A Managerial Perspective

Private sector incentives to participate in research partnerships can be grouped roughly into two categories: cost-economizing incentives and strategic incentives. This paper summarizes the argument in two streams of thought that are often identified with these two sides: the transaction-cost/incomplete contracts approach and the strategic management approach. The paper recounts business motives to engage in research partnerships in each and points out that differentiating between more traditional economic perspectives (transaction costs, incomplete contracts) and strategic management/organizational theory perspectives (strategic networks, resource-dependent view, dynamic capabilities, knowledge-based view, organizational learning, options approach) may not be as sharp as one might suppose at first. The complementary nature of these perspectives should be encouraging for theoreticians looking for a more integrated model of collaboration.

Research joint ventures in the US

Abstract This paper contributes to the ongoing policy debate concerning inter-firm cooperation in R&D. In addition to an overview of the prevalent characteristics of the research joint ventures registered with the US Department of Justice between 1985 and 1995, the paper initiates an inquiry into the characteristics of participating business firms and the type of research activities pursued collectively. The analysis draws on information from a rich new database covering all such joint ventures and their participants.

RESEARCH NETWORKS AS INFRASTRUCTURE FOR KNOWLEDGE DIFFUSION IN EUROPEAN REGIONS

This paper concentrates on the role of research network infrastructure in fostering the dissemination of innovation-related knowledge. It examines the structure of collaborative networks and of knowledge transfer between research, innovation and deployment activities in the field of information and communication technology for the European Union as a whole and for several European regions. Research networks complement diffusion networks by providing additional links and by increasing the number of the organisations involved in sharing and exchanging knowledge. Two types of actors are key players in these networks: hubs and gatekeepers. Hubs maintain the bulk of ties in the networks also helping the smaller and more isolated members remain connected. Gatekeepers bridge research and diffusion networks. Such organisations naturally offer greater policy leverage in establishing a European knowledge infrastructure. Moreover, strengthened inter-network connectivity among research and diffusion activities (deployment) would raise the effectiveness of European research in terms of accelerating innovation.

Science and technology policies towards research joint ventures

Since the early 1980s, developed country governments have made a strong effort to promote cooperative industrial research. Europe has been at the forefront. The support of international research consortia has been the major funding mechanism of the Framework Programmes on research, technological and development (RTD). Awareness and support for cooperative RTD has also increased at the national level, but there are great policy approach differences between member states, and between Europe and the USA and Japan. An interesting development of the last two decades in Europe has been the increasing convergence of key policy areas at the national level that directly affect the incentives of firms to participate in research partnerships, including competition and intellectual property rights policies. Copyright , Beech Tree Publishing.

Building competitive firms: technology policy initiatives in Latin America

Abstract This paper selectively discusses a number of technology and innovation policy initiatives in Central and South America that target small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs). The examples highlight the transition towards a balanced supply–demand approach to innovation. They also highlight that assisting small firms, whether high- or lower-tech, requires long-term dedication, policy consistency, and work at the local level involving all primary stakeholders. Intermediate organizations are found to play a very important role in the success of policy initiatives targeting SMEs. The importance of large firms for development and upgrading of SMEs cannot be underestimated. Frequently, the most useful type of assistance to SMEs is not technological but more general business oriented such as locating and approaching the customer, achieving a steady cash flow, developing relationships of trust, accessing finance, managing the firm effectively, and training the employees. While clusters, industrial districts, and networks can work, the extent to which such business agglomerations can successfully emerge solely as a result of government policy is currently under debate.

Cournot Equilibrium with Imperfectly Appropriable R&D

The authors investigate the effects of knowledge spillovers, numbers of incumbents, and demand characteristics on market equilibria involving either noncooperative firms or a research joint venture. Firms engage in cost-reducing R&D before competing in outputs. Noncooperative R&D expenditure is socially suboptimal with convex demand and likely to be so under general demand functions. A research joint venture involving all firms in the industry always invests too little relative to the social optimum. It may, however, lead to better market performance than is achieved under the noncooperative regime. Copyright 1994 by Blackwell Publishing Ltd.

The Value Of Flexibility In Adapting To Climate Change: A Real Options Analysis Of Investments In Coastal Defense

Adaptation to climate change is likely to be a significant challenge for developing countries. We examine whether a real options approach that recognizes uncertainty and maintains future flexibility can provide an improved adaptation investment strategy. We use a Monte Carlo model to test four strategies for defending against sea level rise. Two of the strategies are inflexible, with the coastal defense fully specified in the first year of analysis. The other two strategies are flexible real options that allow adjustments in the coastal defense over time. We emphatically show that a real options strategy has the potential to increase the benefits of proactive adaptation. Our results prove to be location-dependent, underscoring the need for location-specific analysis. We find that the quality of the information obtained over time has an important bearing on option value and that a countrys institutional capability and the specific mechanisms of international development assistance may affect implementation.