Complementarities in organizational design and the diffusion of information technologies: An empirical analysis

We use a specially designed survey on French firms located in Haute-Savoie to provide empirical evidence suggesting that Information and Communication Technologies adoption is not only influenced by the traditional factors of technology diffusion but also by complementarity effects between strategies, organization and information technologies. The data collected permitted several advances. Firstly, we could study authentic ICT while the recent literature has mainly focused on computer capital stocks or automation tools. Secondly, we constructed measures of the determinants put forward by the models of technology diffusion. Thirdly, we studied three kinds of practices: organizational and strategic practices, technological choices.     

Systemic technology innovation management and analysis of other forms of IP protection

Industry 4.0 and the pandemic have caused recent changes in innovative development, economic situations, and restrictions in various companies and regions of the world, with new stricter legislation related to working conditions, hygiene standards, and health requirements. New technologies are a challenge to the transformation of problem companies and regions, as they often significantly impact economic development. Technological emissions, growing information on dementia among young people, cyber risks, and the risks of so-called advanced technologies (e.g., bio- and nanotechnologies, Industry 4.0 tech) may raise societal concerns about technological progress. This study is part of our long-term research into technological innovation in different companies and regions. Its primary goal is to methodically emphasize the importance and role of the systemic management of technological innovation in companies and regions and analytically compare the innovation success of differently developed regions from a global perspective¹. This research deals with an important aspect of technology management, namely, the processes of technological identification and the protection of related intellectual property (IP). The primary research question is: How has technological development been distributed across different regions over the last two decades? We hypothesize that Asian countries are increasingly moving away from Europe and North America in terms of technological innovation, other forms of technological IP protection, and overall access to innovation, while the focus is on the development of three non-patent forms of technological innovation protection: industrial designs, trademarks, and utility models. The results of our study reveal a significant difference in the approach to technological innovation management and the form of IP protection between so-called advanced and problem companies and regions. This study was conducted between 2018 and 2022.     

A randomised trial comparing the efficacy and safety of topical ketoprofen in Transfersome® gel (IDEA-033) with oral ketoprofen and drug-free ultra-deformable Sequessome™ vesicles (TDT 064) for the treatment of muscle soreness following exercise

We compared the effectiveness of topical ketoprofen in Transfersome^® gel (IDEA-033) with oral ketoprofen and drug-free Sequessome? vesicles (FLEXISEQ^® Sport; TDT 064) in reducing calf muscle soreness. One hundred and sixty eight healthy individuals with a pain score ≥3 (10-point scale) 12–16 h post-exercise (walking down stairs with an altitude of 300–400 m) were randomised to receive IDEA-033 plus oral placebo (two dose groups), oral ketoprofen plus TDT 064, or TDT 064 plus oral placebo. The primary endpoint was muscle soreness reduction from pre-dosing to Day 7. Higher pain scores were recorded with oral ketoprofen plus TDT 064 (mean ± s 462.4 ± 160.4) versus IDEA-033 plus oral placebo (434.7 ± 190.8; P = 0.2931) or TDT 064 plus oral placebo (376.2 ± 159.1; P = 0.0240) in the 7 days post-exercise. Recovery from muscle soreness was longer with oral ketoprofen plus TDT 064 (mean 91.0 ± 19.5 h) versus IDEA-033 plus placebo (mean 81.4 ± 22.9 h; P = 0.5964) or TDT 064 plus placebo (mean 78.9 ± 22.8 h; P = 0.0262). In conclusion, ultradeformable phospholipid vesicles ± ketoprofen did not retard recovery from muscle soreness. TDT 064 improves osteoarthritis-related pain and could be of interest as a treatment for joint pain during and post-exercise.     

Long-term research on technology innovation in the form of new technology patents

Recent changes in innovation development are related to the new technological revolution (Industry 4.0), pandemic, economic crises, and new legislation. These trends provide new opportunities for the improvement of production materials, construction, processes, and capacities. Innovative technologies improve the processes of business analyses and forecasting, as well as new product development, order processing, logistics, production automation, quality control, and marketing. Modern technologies are gradually replacing ergonomically demanding and dangerous occupations. Such innovations are particularly necessary for the transformation of problem companies and regions, as they often have a significant impact on economic development. This study is part of our long-term research on the technology innovation of problem companies and regions. Its primary goal is to methodically emphasize the importance and role of technology innovation management, mainly in problem companies, and analytically compare the innovation success of regions and countries from a global perspective. The study was carried out from 2015 to 2021. The time scope of the analyzed data is 2000–2018. The results show a certain Asian dominance in technology innovation management, in terms of the number of technology patents as well as of the growth dynamics and the ability to overcome the pandemic and crises in general.     

The diffusion of ADSL and costs of switching Internet providers in the broadband industry: Evidence from the French case

The innovative broadband Internet industry is characterised by inertia phenomena in terms of technology choice, as well as selection of Internet service providers (ISPs). Within the set of firms providing the Internet, very often in Europe the incumbent operator has the lion's share of end-customers and supplies the dominant technology. Focusing on the French case, this paper shows that although inertia on the supply side (partly due to the regulation process itself), helps to explain the technology mix reached to date, a more complete picture of the inertia can be obtained when we consider the existence of costs faced by customers when switching between ISPs. We calculate these so-called “switching costs”. The closing section of this paper derives several implications in terms of policy.