Patent trolls on markets for technology - An empirical analysis of NPEs’ patent acquisitions

Patent trolls, or NPEs, appropriate profits from innovation solely by enforcing patents against infringers. They are often characterized as relying on low-quality patents, an assessment that, if correct, would imply that eradicating such patents would effectively terminate the NPE business. In this paper, we shed light on this issue by empirically analyzing NPEs’ patent acquisitions. We draw on a unique dataset of 392 U.S. patents acquired by known NPEs between 1997 and 2006, which we compare to three control groups of 784 U.S. patents each acquired by practicing firms. We find that the probability that a traded patent is acquired by an NPE rather than a practicing entity increases in the scope of the patent, in the patent density of its technology field and, contrary to common belief, in the patent's technological quality. Our findings thus support recent theoretical propositions about the NPE business model, showing that NPEs procure patents that are more likely to be infringed, harder to substitute for, and robust to legal challenges. The fact that NPE-acquired patents are of significantly higher quality than those in the control group implies that elevating minimum patent quality will not put an end to the NPE business, and suggests that this business is sustainable in the long run. We furthermore discuss the fact that NPEs are peculiar players on markets for technology insofar as they are solely interested in the exclusion right, not in the underlying knowledge. We posit that transactions involving NPEs may only be the tip of the iceberg of “patent-only” transactions, a conjecture with strong implications for the efficiency and the study of markets for technologies. Managerial and policy implications are discussed.     

Survivor: The role of innovation in firms’ survival

This paper explores the relationship between innovation and the survival probability of manufacturing firms in the Netherlands, conditional on firm age and size. The empirical analysis combines firm level data on innovation, derived from the second Community Innovation Survey, and on the date of exit, from the Business Register of all firms active in the Netherlands. To estimate the survival probability of a firm we use a non-parametric approach, based on the calculation of Transition Probability Matrices over different time periods. The results show that innovation has a positive and significant effect on the probability of firms’ survival. This effect increases over time and is conditional on firm age and size; we observe that small and young firms are the most exposed to the risk of exit, as found in earlier studies, but also those that most benefit of innovation to survive in the market, especially in the longer term.     

Measuring patent assessment quality—Analyzing the degree and kind of (in)consistency in patent offices’ decision making

We argue that consistent decision making in judging a patent's validity and basing this on its underlying technological quality are important elements of patent office service (“assessment”) quality. To understand which level of assessment quality patent offices (can) provide, particularly in new technological areas, we study the concordance of the European Patent Office's (EPO) granting and opposition decisions for individual patents. Using the biotechnology industry in the 1980s (an emerging patenting area then) as an example, we find no empirical evidence that the EPO provided maximal or optimal assessment quality as far as can be told from bibliographic indicators. We discuss research limitations and consequences of this first empirical analysis, and suggest ideas for refinements in future work.     

The effect of financial constraints, absorptive capacity and complementarities on the adoption of multiple process technologies

This paper investigates the factors affecting the multiple adoption of new process technologies in manufacturing. We focus our attention on the effect of both financial resources and absorptive capacity on the decision to introduce the technology. We argue in favour of a negative effect of financial constraints and provide reasons for a differential effect of internal and external R&D on innovation adoption. Additionally, the methodology allows us to consider the possible complementarities arising when firms adopt several new process technologies. Our results show that financial constraints are dependent on the technology analyzed, whereas only internal R&D investments are strong predictors of adoption. We are also able to present evidence that the three technologies analyzed (numerically controlled machines, computer aided design and robotics) are, to some extent, complementary.     

Founders’ human capital and the growth of new technology-based firms: A competence-based view

In this paper, we analyze empirically the relation between the growth of new technology-based firms and the human capital of founders, with the aim of teasing out the “wealth” and “capability” effects of human capital. For this purpose, we take advantage of a new data set relating to a sample composed of 506 Italian young firms that operate in high-tech industries in both manufacturing and services. In accordance with competence-based theories, the econometric estimates show that the nature of the education and of the prior work experience of founders exerts a key influence on growth. In fact, founders’ years of university education in economic and managerial fields and to a lesser extent in scientific and technical fields positively affect growth while education in other fields does not. Similarly prior work experience in the same industry of the new firm is positively associated with growth while prior work experience in other industries is not. Furthermore, it is the technical work experience of founders as opposed to their commercial work experience that determines growth. The fact that within the founding team there are individuals with prior entrepreneurial experiences also results in superior growth. Lastly, we provide evidence that there are synergistic gains from the combination of the complementary capabilities of founders relating to (i) economic-managerial and scientific-technical education and (ii) technical and commercial industry-specific work experiences. We conclude that the human capital of founders of new technology-based firms is not just a proxy for personal wealth.     

专利技术产业化机理、关键问题与驱动策略

在我国成为"专利申请大国"之后,专利技术产业化成为科技政策的重要议题。通过专利技术产业化机理与阶段分析,从实证角度识别专利技术产业化过程的关键问题并提出对应策略,成为一个既影响微观企业创新行为,又影响宏观自主创新战略实施的重要课题。分析了专利技术从研发、扩散、渗透到标准化四个阶段的关键问题,并结合我国的具体实际和数据分析结果,针对性地提出不断阶段驱动专利技术产业化发展的操作性策略,以期为立法或科技政策制定提供参考。     

Policy entrepreneurship in the co-evolution of institutions, preferences, and technology: Comparing the diffusion of totally chlorine free pulp bleaching technologies in the US and Sweden

This paper uses the concept of policy entrepreneurship to explain the social processes underlying sustainable technical change in the pulp and paper industry in the 1990s. It presents a detailed case study on the differences in the transition to and diffusion of totally chlorine free (TCF) pulp bleaching methods in Sweden and the USA. This change was sustained in the former, while it was almost absent in the latter. The paper studies the causes for this difference. It looks at the complex coevolution of technology, institutions, and consumer preferences that has taken place in both countries and draws conclusions on how transitions to sustainable paths in production and consumption may be supported by economic and social policy.     

知识服务机构联结多样化与制造企业服务创新

与知识服务机构建立联结是制造企业获取服务创新资源的重要路径,多样化联结究竟会对制造企业服务创新绩效产生何种影响,是一个缺乏关注但亟待回答的问题。鉴于此,本文以重庆203个制造企业为样本,考察知识服务机构联结伙伴多样化、联结地域多样化对制造企业服务创新绩效的直接影响,并对跨界搜索经验的调节效应进行检验。研究结果表明：联结伙伴多样化对制造企业服务创新绩效具有倒U效应;联结地域多样化对制造企业服务创新绩效存在正向线性效应,但没有曲线效应;跨界搜索经验调节联结伙伴多样化和制造企业服务创新绩效间的倒U型关系;跨界搜索经验增强了联结地域多样化对制造企业服务创新绩效的正向影响,而曲线关系的调节效应未得到证实。本研究结论推进了组织间关系视角下的制造企业服务创新理论研究,为制造企业选择合适的知识服务机构联结多样性进行服务创新提供了启示。, 与知识服务机构建立联结是制造企业获取服务创新资源的重要路径,多样化联结究竟会对制造企业服务创新绩效产生何种影响,是一个缺乏关注但亟待回答的问题。鉴于此,本文以重庆203个制造企业为样本,考察知识服务机构联结伙伴多样化、联结地域多样化对制造企业服务创新绩效的直接影响,并对跨界搜索经验的调节效应进行检验。研究结果表明：联结伙伴多样化对制造企业服务创新绩效具有倒U效应;联结地域多样化对制造企业服务创新绩效存在正向线性效应,但没有曲线效应;跨界搜索经验调节联结伙伴多样化和制造企业服务创新绩效间的倒U型关系;跨界搜索经验增强了联结地域多样化对制造企业服务创新绩效的正向影响,而曲线关系的调节效应未得到证实。本研究结论推进了组织间关系视角下的制造企业服务创新理论研究,为制造企业选择合适的知识服务机构联结多样性进行服务创新提供了启示。     

Review of “Search Engines: Information Retrieval in Practice” by Croft,Metzler and Strohman

Despite the common public use of Web search engines, their internal design details mostly remain as a black art. The speculation is that there is a significant knowledge gap between what is published by academia and what is guarded behind the doors of large-scale search companies. “Search Engines: Information Retrieval in Practice” is one of the few books that make an attempt to cover issues involved in search engine design and is probably the most comprehensive book published so far on this topic. Unfortunately, the book fails to be a complete search engine guide as its content is dominated by the topics from information retrieval, text processing, and statistics. More precisely, the focus of the book is biased towards the “search” rather than the “engines” as, in most places, discussions on effectiveness dominate those on efficiency by a great margin. However, the book stands as a very solid IR book.     

基于“天、地、人”视阈的创业企业案例研究

现有的创业过程模型是基于西方背景的,无法同时实现多悖论、多维度、多层级间的协同。面对中国复杂多变的创业环境和特有的文化内涵,迫切需要从哲学高度重新思考创业过程并进行本土化研究。该文采用多案例研究方法,从"天、地、人"思维框架入手,基于"阴阳平衡"理论整合现有创业理论的对立逻辑,探索出创新生态环境下创业过程模型。结论:创新供给与创新需求的动态不平衡是创业机会的源泉,柔性知识资源和伦理型领导对发现创业机会有重要意义;随着企业刚性知识资源的沉淀,创业企业需要加大创新投入并继续深化伦理型领导;企业创业过程是因果逻辑和效果逻辑相互依存动态变化的过程。     

Paving the road toward the use of β-Fe2O3 in solar water splitting: Raman identification,phase transformation and strategies for phase stabilization

Although β-Fe₂O₃ has a high theoretical solar-to-hydrogen efficiency because of its narrow band gap, the study of β-Fe₂O₃ photoanodes for water splitting is elusive as a result of their metastable nature. Raman identification of β-Fe₂O₃ is theoretically and experimentally investigated in this study for the first time, thus clarifying the debate about its Raman spectrum in the literature. Phase transformation of β-Fe₂O₃ to α-Fe₂O₃ was found to potentially take place under laser and electron irradiation as well as annealing. Herein, phase transformation of β-Fe₂O₃ to α-Fe₂O₃ was inhibited by introduction of Zr doping, and β-Fe₂O₃ was found to withstand a higher annealing temperature without any phase transformation. The solar water splitting photocurrent of the Zr-doped β-Fe₂O₃ photoanode was increased by 500% compared to that of the pure β-Fe₂O₃ photoanode. Additionally, Zr-doped β-Fe₂O₃ exhibited very good stability during the process of solar water splitting. These results indicate that by improving its thermal stability, metastable β-Fe₂O₃ film is a promising photoanode for solar water splitting.