Quantity or Quality? Collaboration Strategies in Research and Development and Incentives to Patent

37 Pages Posted: 19 Dec 2012

See all articles by Hanna Hottenrott

Hanna Hottenrott

Technische Universität München (TUM)

Cindy Lopes-Bento

K.U.Leuven; ZEW

Multiple version iconThere are 2 versions of this paper

Date Written: June 1, 2012

Abstract

Using count data models controlling for unobserved heterogeneity, this study shows for a large sample of R&D-active manufacturing firms in Flanders that collaborative R&D has a positive effect on firms’ patenting in terms of both quantity and quality. However, when distinguishing between alliances that aim at joint creation of new knowledge and alliances that aim at the exchange of existing knowledge, the results suggest that the positive effect on patenting quantity is to a large extent driven by knowledge exchange alliances rather than joint R&D. Firms engaged in creation alliances, on the other hand, receive more forward citations per patent which indicates that joint R&D enhances patent quality. In the light of the literature on strategic patenting, our results may further suggest that creation alliances lead to patents that are filed to protect valuable intellectual property, while exchange alliances drive “portfolio patenting” which has been shown to result in fewer citations for the individual patent.

Keywords: R&D Collaboration, Knowledge Exchange, Patents, Innovation, Count Data Models

JEL Classification: O31, O32, O33, O34

Suggested Citation

Hottenrott, Hanna and Lopes-Bento, Cindy, Quantity or Quality? Collaboration Strategies in Research and Development and Incentives to Patent (June 1, 2012). Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=2190835 or http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.2190835

Hanna Hottenrott (Contact Author)

Technische Universität München (TUM) ( email )

Arcisstrasse 21
Munich, DE 80333
Germany

Cindy Lopes-Bento

K.U.Leuven ( email )

Oude Markt 13
Leuven, Vlaams-Brabant 3000
Belgium

ZEW ( email )

P.O. Box 10 34 43
L 7,1
D-68034 Mannheim, 68034
Germany

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