Impact of different patent cooperation network models on innovation performance of technology-based SMEs

ABSTRACT

Patent cooperation network, an important way for technology-based SMEs to enhance innovation performance, has become a research hotspot in recent years. Different types of patent cooperation network models and different degree of SMEs embedding them will lead to different effects on enterprise innovation performance improvement. This research selected the ICT industry and the pharmaceutical industry technology-based SMEs with rich patent output as research objects. Based on binary structure perspective of network breadth and depth, the patent cooperation networks are divided into four types: ‘strong exploration’, ‘weak exploration’, ‘strong utilisation’ and ‘weak utilisation’. Through the multi-selection model and the negative binomial regression model, the general factors in the selection of patent cooperation network models and the impact of different models on enterprise innovation performance are analysed. This research provides path breakthroughs and development proposals for technology-based SMEs to access innovative resources and enhance their innovation capabilities on patent cooperation networks.

KEYWORDS:

• Technology-based SMEs
• patent cooperation network
• innovation performance

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Notes on contributors

Liying Wang is a Professor, Doctor, Research area: technology innovation and intellectual property management.

Yan Wang is a Master degree candidate, Research area: technology innovation and intellectual property management.

Yuan Lou is a PhD candidate, Research area: technology innovation and intellectual property management.

Jun Jin is an Associate professor, Doctor, Research area: technology innovation management.

ORCID

Jun Jin http://orcid.org/0000-0003-2350-7069

Additional information

Funding

This work was supported by The National Social Science Fund of China, Key Project (grant number 16AGL001), ‘Research on TPP Intellectual Property Rules and Its Influence on China's Export Enterprises and Coping Strategies’.