nep-tid New Economics Papers
on Technology and Industrial Dynamics
Issue of 2012‒05‒02
two papers chosen by
Rui Baptista
Technical University of Lisbon

  1. Patent Oppositions as Competitive Tools: An Analysis of the Major Players in the European Market of White Goods By Alessandro STERLACCHINI
  2. R&D and Aggregate Fluctuations By Artuç, Erhan; Pourpourides, Panayiotis M.

  1. By: Alessandro STERLACCHINI (Universit… Politecnica delle Marche, Dipartimento di Scienze Economiche e Sociali)
    Abstract: This paper examines the role and determinants of patent oppositions between the main competitors in a given industry. Differently from previous studies, it is not concerned with high-tech firms but considers the major players in the European market of white goods. Thus, we are dealing with a medium-tech, scale intensive industry which, during the last two decades, has been characterised by a stagnating demand and decreasing unit values. As a result, the level of competition has increased, especially in terms of product quality and innovations. Among the consequences of that, the leading companies in Europe have not only intensified their patenting activities but also the usage of oppositions against the patents of direct competitors. By considering 961 patents granted by the EPO to the above companies over the period 2000-2005, the paper shows, among other things, that the probability of receiving an opposition from industry rivals does not depend on the patent quality or value. Accordingly, it contends that, at least in the industries of this kind, the extent and direction of patent oppositions are mainly associated with idiosyncratic corporate characteristics and strategies.
    Keywords: Patent oppositions, Strategic patenting, White good industry
    JEL: L68 O34
    Date: 2012–04
    URL: http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:anc:wpaper:374&r=tid
  2. By: Artuç, Erhan; Pourpourides, Panayiotis M. (Cardiff Business School)
    Abstract: Using US data for the period 1959-2007, we identify sectoral productivity shocks and capital investment-specific shocks by employing a Vector Autoregression whose shock structure is disciplined by a general equilibrium model. Controlling for real and nominal factors, we find that capital investment-specific shocks explain 70 percent of fluctuations of R&D investment while R&D technology shocks explain 30 percent of the variation of aggregate output net of R&D investment (i.e. the output of the non-R&D sector). Technology shocks jointly explain almost all the variation of output in the R&D sector and 78 percent of the variation of output in the non-R&D sector.
    Keywords: Productivity Shocks; Investment-specific Shocks; R&D; VAR
    JEL: C13 C32 C68 E32 O3
    Date: 2012–01
    URL: http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:cdf:wpaper:2012/2&r=tid

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