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In this paper, we develop a theoretical framework to investigate the impact of adopting a strategy of know-how trading on the degree of research and development (R&D) cooperation. We show that the consequences of cooperation in know-how sharing under the conditions of the model are similar to a policy of cooperation in R&D investments in areas with large spillovers. An industry-wide policy of cooperation among competitors with respect to R&D investment and sharing would simply result in maximal joint profits. This cooperative R&D outcome could be generalized to any degree of spillover other than 100%. In this paper, the commitment to a policy of know-how trading by the participants in an industry is explained by the firm’s attempt to induce the equilibrium of a single industry-wide cooperative research joint venture. In a repeated game framework, we show that pre-commitments by non-cooperative firms to disclose their own know-how to the industry can be effective in inducing cooperative R&D investments by the participants. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Prior studies find that firms cut research and development (R&D) expense in response to earnings considerations. We extend this stream of research by documenting that firms narrowly achieving an earnings threshold also report unusually high capital expenditures. In addition, these firms’ total investments (R&D expense plus capital expenditures) do not vary in response to earnings thresholds, which suggests that, on average, reductions in R&D expense are offset by concurrent increases in capital expenditures. Lastly, our research design allows us to infer that the increased capital expenditures are largely R&D investments that are capitalized instead of non-R&D capital expenditures, suggesting that overall investments in R&D are relatively unchanged. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study empirically investigates the causal relationship between research and development (R&D) expenditure and innovation in Greece, during the period 1981–2009. It uses time series analysis, the theoretical background of the endogenous knowledge-based growth theories and the annual number of patent applications to the European Patent Organization as proxy of innovation activity. The Johansen method is applied to examine the possibility of co-integration. The results confirm the presence of a long-run relationship between R&D expenditure and innovation. The total and private R&D expenditure appear to have a positive effect on total and business innovation. In addition, the public R&D expenditure has a positive influence on business and total innovation, which indicates the existence of significant externalities of public sector research. The long-run elasticity of innovation with respect to R&D expenditure is estimated to be, on average, 1.9. Implications for public policies and related practices are formulated. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We study the economic value of both embodied technological change and Research and Development (R&D) investment as proxies for the inputs of innovative activities conducted by Vietnamese firms. Our main focus is on the profitability of young innovative companies (YICs), private innovative companies (PICs), and small and young companies (SYCs). In particular, we test whether YICs could prove successful in fostering economic development through their technological change activities. Results show that (a) although YICs are more R&D intensive and innovative than PICs and SYCs, in general they do not produce equivalent performance; however those specific YICs focusing on technological change potentially outperform their counterparts, and (b) PICs are more capable than the other types of firms in translating their innovative effort to higher profitability. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Several studies have revealed that R&D funds, university-level characteristics and the internal university environment determine the number of patents applied for by universities. However, only a few papers have analysed the effect of the demand side on the production of patents. This study looks into the extent to which patents generated by European universities are related to the regional specialization of host regions. Drawing on a sample of 3330 university-owned patents from the European Patent Office, covering the period 2001-2004, and several count models, our results suggest that the regional economic specialization significantly affects the production of university patents in high-technology sectors. We did not find any significant relationship between the regional specialization and the production of medium and low university-patented technologies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of this paper is to explore the characteristics of symmetric R&D networks that generate the highest overall welfare in a setting where spillovers between non-cooperating firms are ignored. The relationship between the network population and the outcomes is shown to be sensitive to the market structure. The first result pertains to the features of the successive efficient networks. In a differentiated product market, the consistency of the social and individual benefits is not affected by expanding the network. In contrast, the social benefit in a homogeneous product market limits the cooperation between firms. This in turn creates a gap between individual and social profits (an undesirable area). This gap between the two perspectives is maximized by increasing the network size. The second result concerns the expected improvement in the total welfare with respect to the network size. The results show that the benefit behind expanding the socially optimal structure is maximized when firms belong to a differentiated product market. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The UNFCCC has stated that energy policies and measures to address climate change should be cost-effective to ensure global benefits at the lowest possible cost. To mitigate the bulk of carbon emission from the electricity sector, a large market penetration of renewable energy technologies with as low cost as possible is a key research topic. The energy-related R&D policy in Japan aims to achieve a green economy. In our study, based on this context, we demonstrated how to optimize the timing of public R&D investment within the framework of a bottom-up partial equilibrium model. The developed optimization model represents the Japanese electricity sector and minimizes the total system cost subject to an accumulated carbon emission constraint. Our main research focus is the role of R&D activity, especially in the innovation stage of renewable technologies. We employ a two-factor learning curve and quantify the impact of the learning effect on the dynamic diffusion of major renewable technologies. The study shows a dynamic technology transition in the Japanese electricity sector and the optimized R&D investment schedule for each renewable technology. With the first-best energy policy, an R&D budget of more than 2000 million USD would be allocated to PV in 2050, which corresponds to 45% of the energy-related Japanese R&D budget in 2050. Because some have criticized the uncertainty problems with dynamic simulations and learning models, supplemental sensitivity analyses are included. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Using Swedish microdata, we find no evidence for the concerns circulating in the public debate that foreign acquisitions lead to reductions in both R&D expenditures and high-skilled activities in targeted domestic firms for either MNEs or non-MNEs. Previous studies have only focused on larger firms. In this paper, we are able to study the impact on smaller firms (fewer than 50 employees), which is important because 90% of the firms acquired by foreign enterprises meet this criterion. For this group of firms, there is no information on R&D, but by using the register of educational attainment, we obtain data on the share of high-skilled labour in all Swedish firms, irrespective of size. Interestingly, we find that among smaller firms, foreign enterprises tend to acquire high-productive, skill-intensive firms (cherry-picking). After the acquisitions, skill upgrading appears in acquired smaller, non-MNE firms, particularly in the service sector. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper presents a simple model of firm and consumer behavior. We formulate a sub-market entry game, where boundedly rational firms decide on investing in R&D for inventing new products that will appeal to targeted groups of consumers. The success depends on the amount of resources available for the project as well as on the firm's familiarity with market characteristics. Successful innovation feeds back into the firm size and (potentially into) market knowledge and increases the future R&D productivity. A new product decreases the market-shares of incumbents. However, this business stealing effect is asymmetric across incumbent population. We identify the section of parameter space where firms have an incentive to diversify horizontally. In this section, the model results in rich industrial dynamics. Firm size heterogeneity emerges endogenously in the model. Equilibrium firm size distributions are heavy tailed and skewed to the right. The heaviness of the tail depends on submarket specificity of firm's market knowledge. This relationship is non-monotonic, emphasizing two different effects of innovation on industrial dynamics (positive feedback and asymmetric business stealing). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Using a simple model with interdependent utilities, we study how social networks influence individual voluntary contributions to the provision of a public good. Departing from the standard model of public good provision, we assume that an agent's utility has two terms: ( a) 'ego'-utility derived from the agent's consumption of public and private goods, and ( b) a social utility which is the sum of utility spillovers from other agents with whom the agent has social relationships. We establish conditions for the existence of a unique interior Nash equilibrium and describe the equilibrium in terms of network characteristics. We show that social network always has a positive effect on the provision of the public good. We also find that, in networks with 'small world'-like modular structures, 'bridging' ties connecting distant parts of social network play an important role inducing an agent's contribution to public good. Assumptions and results of the model are discussed in relation to the role of social capital in community-level development projects and to the effect of innovation networks on firms' R&D investments. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Nowadays, a number of environmental issues have seriously come to the fore. For this reason, the R & D spending on eco-friendly vehicles that use electric power has been gradually increasing. In general, fuel economy and pollutant emissions of both conventional and eco-friendly vehicles are measured through chassis dynamometer tests that are performed on a variety of driving cycles before an actual driving test. There are a number of driving cycles that have been developed for the for performance evaluation of conventional vehicles. However, there is a lack of research into driving cycle for EV. Because large differences exist between the drive system and driving charateristics of EV and that of CV, a study on driving cycle for EV should be conducted. In this study, the necessity of an urban driving cycle for the performance evaluation of electric vehicles is confirmed by developing the driving cycle. First, the Gwacheon-city Urban Driving Cycle for Electric Vehicles (GUDC-EV) is developed by using driving data obtained through actual driving experiments and statistical analysis. Second, GUDC-EV is verified by constructing EV simulators and performing simulations that use the actual driving data. The simulation results are then compared against existing urban driving cycles, such as FTP-72, NEDC, and Japan 10-15. These results confirm that GUDC-EV can be used as an urban driving cycle to evaluate the performance of electric vehicles and validate the necessity of development of the driving cycle for electric vehicles. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper considers the determinants and effects of domestic versus cross-border mergers and acquisitions (M&As) in the pharmaceutical industry. Results show that companies that have had large research and development (R&D) expenditures as a percentage of sales in the past, but which have not had a significant number of drug approvals in the previous five years, tend to merge with foreign firms. Domestic mergers are formed between two firms within the same country, which typically have lower R&D expenditures as a percentage of sales and drug approvals in the previous five years. In addition, results show that domestic mergers increase drug approvals in the short run, but the effect diminishes three years after an M&A is finalized. However, cross-border mergers, which occur between two companies from different countries, largely have long-lasting (five years or more) positive effects on new drug approvals. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article reflects on the ambitious plan of Luxembourg for economic diversification and societal development of the country through research activities and investments. Topics discussed include increase in public investments for research activities, efforts made by country's National Research Fund to encourage international research and development Luxembourg's largest steel foundry also known as Belval City of Science.

Many firms facing low-cost international competition can reposition into niches. This studyexamines one such niche: industry-focused international firms, defined as companies thatproduce, sell, and expand internationally within one industry. Analysis of the global pharmaceuticalindustry finds a group comprising of about 20% of the firms that pursue this strategy. This strategy is distributed internationally, but not uniformly. It is relatively more prevalent among firms based in emerging countries compared to industrializednations. These firms invest in R&D in order to create deep specialized expertise that they exploit internationally [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Expert elicitations are a promising method for determining how R&D investments are likely to have an impact on technological advance in climate change energy technologies. But, expert elicitations are time consuming and resource intensive. Thus, we investigate the value of the information gained in expert elicitations. More specifically, given baseline elicitations from one study, we estimate the expected value of better information (EVBI) from revisiting and improving these assessments. We find that the EVBI is very large in comparison with the cost of performing expert elicitations. We also find that EVBI is higher on technologies with larger budgets and with net values that are not too high or too low. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A decision problem-allocating public research and development (R&D) funding-is faced by a planner who has ambiguous knowledge of welfare effects of the various research areas. We model this as a reverse portfolio choice problem faced by a Bayesian decision-maker. Two elements of the planner's inferential system are developed: a conditional distribution of welfare 'returns' on an allocation, given stated preferences of citizens for the different areas, and a minimum risk criterion for re-allocating these funds, given the performance of a status quo level of funding. A case study of Canadian public research funds expended on various applications of agricultural biotechnology is provided. The decision-making methodology can accommodate a variety of collective expenditure and resource allocation problems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

* This paper investigated the influence of country-level factors that have led to shifts in the patterns of international R&D investments made by Multinational Corporations (MNCs), from an exclusive focus on developed countries to a broader scope that also includes developing countries. * Differences in a country's national technological innovation capability, that comprised the country's capacity for the creation of technology, technology infrastructure and the development of human skills, were the most important factors in attracting R&D investments. * Different strategic motivations like home-base exploiting versus home-base augmenting foreign R&D investments are attracted to countries with differing national innovation capabilities. The country's Intellectual Property Rights (IPR) score was also an important influence on R&D investments. International investor's experience with the country, as measured by prior FDI inflows, was a critical element in attracting R&D investment inflows. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper empirical evidence is presented on the elasticity of private R & D spending on its price. A censored panel-data regression model with random effects is applied to a balanced panel of 726 Italian firms over the 1992–1997 period. Implied estimates point out that Italian firms' response to policy measures (including tax credits), aimed at reducing the user cost of R & D capital, is likely to be substantial (1.50–1.77). Furthermore, we also find that the elasticity of R & D spending is higher in recession (2.01) than in expansion (0.87). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article presents information on a budget proposal for scientific research and development released by U.S. President Barack Obama on February 2, 2015. It discusses the response of the scientific community to the proposal, the objective of the proposal, the challenges facing Obama and supporters of the proposal in the U.S. Congress, and the budget to be received by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.

The authors discuss the duplicate grants for same science research work provided by funding agencies to researchers. They note that some of these agencies permit submission of research funding applications with similar or identical goals, hypotheses, objectives, and aims. However, they think that researchers should not be authorized to get duplicate grants for the same work. They note studies suggesting that research community need to conduct in-depth investigation of the duplication's extent.

The article reports on the plan to create the Alliance for Accelerating Excellence in Science in Africa (AESA). Topics mentioned include the desire of African scientists to gain control over research in the country, key funding bodies that support the creation of the alliance, percentage of foreign funding of research and development in the country, and management of research grants by the alliance.

The article discusses the significant investment needed in producing a breakthrough drug. Key findings in the analysis of the actual success rates achieved in drug research and development (R&D) for hepatitis C virus (HCV) showed that the breakthroughs have come at a high cost with a 2.0% overall success rate. Results in the investigation of drugs for Alzheimer disease (AD) and antibiotic-resistant infections, highlighting the substantial level of R&D investment required are also offered.

The article talks about the possible scientific research repercussions in lieu of Scotland's vote for independence. Topics include divisional vote for independence, fear of being a small player in the European Space Agency due to division from pan-UK government body Research Councils (RCUK) and a positive trend for innovation along with additional research fund in case of independence. Comments from land economist Bryan MacGregor supporting independence are mentioned.

The article focuses on the rate of invention and volume of new patents resulting from funded research as a metric for evaluating the success of research funded by the U.S. National Institutes of Health (NIH) as of June 2014. Topics highlighted include evidence showing that federally funded research and development (R&D) is a productive use of taxpayer money and importance of forward citation count in determining the impact of patents.

The article focuses on the use of basic science by new technology firms as older technology firms are moving away from fundamental research as of May 2014. Topics discussed include the use of sensors that track animal poaching by biologist Lucas Joppa, increase in industrial funding of basic research beginning in 2006 as shown by the U.S. National Science Foundation (NSF) and increase in company-based research publication by new technology and Internet companies.

The article focuses on federal budget proposed by Chinese Prime Minister Li Keqiang and expenditure on research & development (R&D). Topics discussed include 423 million dollars grant awarded to the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS), 23 percent increase in the R&D expenditure over the past decade, a report on misuse of research funding released by China's National Audit Office. Also presents views of CAS president Bai Chunli and policy researcher Su Jun.

The article reports on possible chances of German Chancel­lor Angela Merkel to hold a third term in office following the end of elections in Germany on September 22, 2013 and further discusses concerns associated with the government funding over German science budget. Peter Gruss, outgoing president of the Max Planck Society, examines the impact of budget pressures such as welfare and transport, and debt reduction on the country's research and development.

The article focuses on the money saving techniques that can be employed by the energy and safety policies framing department U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) to produce positive results for science and engineering in the U.S. It advices that to avoid duplexing of the science projects the review of portfolio of research and development (R&D) programs should be done very severe.

The article offers news briefs related to nature as of April 2013. It states that U.S. President Barack Obama has proposed a $143 billion budget for research and development. It mentions the expanded geographical range of the H7N9 avian flu virus infection which now detected in other places in China such as Beijing and Henan province. It adds that European Food Safety Authority reported the success of a vaccination program to treat Salmonella bacteria in poultry in Europe.

The article focuses on the concerns of scientists and European Union (EU) science officials regarding the budget jump for the Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme proposed by the European Commission (EC) in November 2011. It states that EU officials argue that the 77.6 billion euros budget request was unrealistic. It says that critics of European Institute of Innovation and Technology (EIT) argue that the money would be better spent on initiatives with a proven track record.

The article focuses on scientific research in India and the need for the nation to examine its approach and work with other nations to realize its full potential. It states India devotes under one percent of its gross domestic product to research and development and comments India needs to expand its research workforce and reduce bureaucracy which impedes research and innovations. It mentions that thousands of nongovernmental organizations had their registration revoked to silence some critics.

A correction to the article "Funding by numbers" which wrongly labeled the vertical axis of the graphic "Scholarly spending" instead of "Percentage of GDP spent on research and development" in a 2014 issue of the periodical, is presented.

The author comments on administration of science & research and need of better science support and governance in Chile. It mentions that Chile spent its gross domestic product's 0.35 percent on research & development (R&D) in 2012, which was the least amount spent by a Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) countries. It also highlights the changes in number of grants awarded by the National Fund for the Scientific and Technology Development to support Chile's basic R&D.

The article discusses the initiative taken by governments for research and development in South America. It informs that a research scholar Andrea Bragas has left his postdoctoral fellowship at the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor due to lack of funding. It also mentions the role of the National Council for Scientific and Technical Development for promotion of scientific and technological research in Brazil.

The article focuses on the impact of cuts in public funding for science and technology in Portugal on the research and development (R&D) as of February 2014 and mentions 40 percent decline in postdoctoral fellowships awarded by the Science and Technology Foundation (FCT) from 2012-2013.

The article reports on the research on biomedical research and development (R&D) spending in the U.S., Europe and Asia-Oceania. It highlights the trend of expenditure between 2007 and 2012 which indicated a drop in annual growth rates except in China and South Korea. It also notes that funds from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) is not a potential way of retaining R&D leadership in the American nation.

The article focuses on the launch of Global Health Innovative Technology fund by Japanese pharmaceutical companies, the Japanese government and the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation as of November 2013, to carry out the research on treatment of malaria, tuberculosis and neglected tropical diseases. It informs that international collaborators will raise 100 million U.S. dollars to spend on research. An overview of development of drugs and vaccination related to the disease is presented.

A letter to the editor is presented in response to the article about the need to research and development (R&D) expenditure in Canada which rank seventh and sixth in the world's research output and impact in the September 2012 issue.

The author reflects on the impact of the proposed budget cuts in Spain on the future of science in the country. He notes that the cutting measures had indicated a clear lack of foresight on the part of policymakers aimed to sabotage the research- and technology-based developments that could promote competitiveness in global research. He states that the financial trouble is an opportunity for the government to take the bold steps to lay the groundwork for a research- and innovation-based economy.

The article focuses on Japan Display Inc., which was launched in April 1, 2012 in Tokyo, Japan. It says that the effort was due to the merger of the subsidiaries of Japanese display manufacturers such as Hitachi Ltd., Sony Corp. and Toshiba KK. It states that the company is supported by government investment funds, in which 150 billion yen is allocated to research and development. It adds that the company will focus on organic light-emitting diode displays (OLED).

The article focuses on the push and pull economic incentives, which were proposed to promote new research and development (R&D) in the antibiotic area. It mentions that a model was developed to determine the present value of push incentives. It adds that a combination of both push and pull incentives is likely suitable for reversing the failure of the market to provide enough incentives for antibiotics development.

The author reflects on the recovery of research and development in Russia after two decades of financial crisis. The author gives credit to Science and Education Minister Andrei Fursenko on the improved situation of the country. He also mentions the country's mega-grant project with Germany on carbon flux. However, he states that over-regulation and institutional barriers on research should be reduced by the government in building a knowledge-driven economy.