Distribution of intellectual property rights and the development of technology suppliers

Arbeitspapier

The importance of customer relationships as a source of suppliers’ innovative activity and competence accumulation has been widely recognised. The more a relationship involves collaboration and creative, non-standardised customer solutions, the more there is potential for the development of the supplier’s competencies – but also for a conflict of interests pertaining to the intellectual property rights (IPRs) to the output. IPRs provide the right to economically exploit and further develop an intellectual asset. The impact of a contract allocating IPRs, and thereby partly conditioning the ex post utilisation of relationship-related knowledge, has been commonly ignored in business economics literature. The increased knowledge-intensity of products has, however, increased technology firms’ concern with protecting their intellectual assets that often underlies competitive advantage and company value. This paper provides a theoretical analysis of the determinants likely to affect allocation of IPRs in buyer-supplier relationships. It also concerns consequent implications for the development of the suppliers’ competitive advantage and diversification as a means to decrease possible dependence of the main customer. Contracting on asset ownership in vertical relationships inherently involves bargaining power and incentives to make relationship-specific investments. These issues have relevance in knowledge-intensive industries, such as electronics and biotechnology, in which firms feed on cross-boundary knowledge transfers, and in which successful development of small innovative firms often depends on relationships with resource-abundant established firms.

Angaben zum Objekt

• Sprache: Englisch

Verweise und Beziehungen

• Erschienen in: Series: ETLA Discussion Papers ; No. 844

Klassifikation und Themen

• Klassifikation: Wirtschaft
• Thema: buyer-supplier relationships ; intellectual property rights ; IPRs ; contracts ; customisation ; resource-based view ; resource dependence ; bargaining power ; asiakas-toimittajasuhteet ; immateriaalioikeudet ; sopimukset ; tuotteiden räätälöinti ; voimavarapohjainen yrityksen teoria ; resurssiriippuvuus ; neuvotteluvoima ; Immaterialgüterrechte ; Lieferanten-Kunden-Beziehung ; Industrieökonomik ; Innovationsmanagement ; Theorie

Beteiligte, Orts- und Zeitangaben

• Ereignis: Geistige Schöpfung
• (wer): Paija, Laura
• Ereignis: Veröffentlichung
• (wer): The Research Institute of the Finnish Economy (ETLA)
• (wo): Helsinki
• (wann): 2003

Weitere Informationen

• Handle: http://hdl.handle.net/10419/63631
• Letzte Aktualisierung: 10.03.2025, 11:44 MEZ