Innovation and SMEs patent propensity in Korea

초록

In general, all inventions are patented. However, there are numerous innovative activities that do not come under the coverage of patent protection even though patenting an innovation in different contexts remains vital. This paper analyses patent propensity as an outcome of innovative activities of regional SMEs. To achieve this, it does a robust regression analysis to estimate models to test five research hypotheses related to patent propensity using 263 firms participating in collaborative R&D with universities located in the Gwangju region in Korea. The empirical results show that a CEO's academic qualifications are positively related to propensity to patent. The findings also show that a CEO's intention to pursue new knowledge through open innovations is more relevant for patent propensity than public incentive policy instruments for making SMEs innovative by adapting innovation manuals, including the number of patents. Copyright ? 2021 Inderscience Enterprises Ltd.

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