Industry Specialization, Diversity and the Efficiency of Regional Innovation Systems
Michael Fritsch, Viktor Slavtchev
Jena Economic Research Papers, Nr. 2007-018,
No. 18,
2007
Abstract
Innovation processes are characterized by a pronounced division of labor between actors. Two types of externality may arise from such interactions. On the one hand, a close location of actors affiliated to the same industry may stimulate innovation (MAR externalities). On the other hand, new ideas may be born by the exchange of heterogeneous and complementary knowledge between actors, which belong to different industries (Jacobs’ externalities). We test the impact of both MAR as well as Jacobs’ externalities on innovative performance at the regional level. The results suggest an inverted u-shaped relationship between regional specialization in certain industries and innovative performance. Further key determinants of the regional innovative performance are private sector R&D and university-industry collaboration.
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Innovation cooperation: experiences from East and West Germany
Jutta Günther
Science and Public Policy,
2004
Abstract
This paper deals with innovation cooperation as a means to support the ongoing catch-up process of the East German economy. Against prevalent beliefs, it can be shown that East German enterprises are more often involved in innovation co-operation than West German firms, and differences in cooperation partner priorities only reflect the given structural differences between the two regions. While cooperating enterprises in East and West Germany are clearly more innovative than their non-cooperating counterparts, a productivity advantage of these firms is (so far) only observable in West Germany. Reasons for this surprising finding are discussed.
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Innovation co-operations in East and West Germany: Surprising differences
Jutta Günther
Wirtschaft im Wandel,
No. 4,
2003
Abstract
Der Beitrag untersucht das Kooperationsverhalten ostdeutscher Unternehmen auf dem Gebiet der Innovation und geht dabei der Frage nach, ob und inwieweit sich kooperierende Unternehmen im Vergleich zu nicht-kooperierenden Unternehmen durch eine stärkere Innovationsaktivität und höhere Produktivität auszeichnen. Die auf der Basis einer Auswertung des Mannheimer Innovationspanels gewonnenen Ergebnisse zeigen, dass - entgegen einem verbreiteten Vorurteil - ostdeutsche Unternehmen im Vergleich zu westdeutschen Unternehmen häufiger kooperieren, und dass die Unterschiede bezüglich der Wahl der Kooperationspartner primär die unterschiedlichen strukturellen Gegebenheiten Ost- und Westdeutschlands widerspiegeln. Kooperierende Unternehmen sind in Ost- und Westdeutschland deutlich innovativer als nicht-kooperierende Unternehmen. Ein Produktivitätsvorsprung kooperierender Unternehmen gegenüber nicht-kooperierenden Unternehmen zeigt sich jedoch nur in Westdeutschland. Ostdeutsche kooperierende Unternehmen verzeichnen sogar eine leicht niedrigere Produktivität als ostdeutsche nicht-kooperierende Unternehmen.
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Innovation cooperation in East Germany - only a half-way success?
Jutta Günther
IWH Discussion Papers,
No. 170,
2003
Abstract
The paper focuses on the question whether enterprises that engage in innovation cooperation with external partners are more innovative and thus more productive than non-cooperating firms. A comparison between East and West Germany is being made. It shows that cooperating enterprises in East and West Germany are indeed more innovative than non-cooperating firms, but there remains a clear productivity gap between East and West German cooperating firms. Furthermore, in East Germany - different from West Germany - non-cooperating firms are even more productive than cooperating firms.
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Spillover effects and R&D co-operations - The influence of market structure
Anita Wölfl
IWH Discussion Papers,
No. 122,
2000
Abstract
This paper examines empirically the role of market structure for the influence of spill-over effects on R&D-cooperations. The results of a microeconometric analysis, based on firm data on innovation, let in general presume that with intensified competition also the influence of spillovers on R&D-cooperation increases. However, competition seems to induce firms to search for effective firm-specific appropriation facilities first. Spillovers that are sufficiently high such that the internalisation effect from R&D-cooperation more than outweighs the competitive effect from research, only arise whenever firms are not able to protect their research results through any appropriation facility. Additionally, there is some evidence that spillover effects may even hinder firms from cooperating in R&D when there is intensive competition on the research stage.
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