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The study explores Open Innovation practices adopted by large firms in low- and medium-technology industries to foster innovation when the integration of distant knowledge from far scientific and technological fields is required. The study performs an explanatory single case study methodology. It focuses on the Italian food producer Barilla and its Blu1877 corporate venture capital fund to explore innovations in the food and agri-tech domains. It emerges that, with the intent to create and orchestrate an Open Innovation Ecosystem, Barilla moves across two main trajectories: (i) the search for external knowledge and expansion of network for new markets and technology exploration, and (ii) the support and mentorship of innovative start-ups that explore and develop novel ideas and technologies. The resulting Open Innovation Ecosystem has become the locus where innovations are developed by sharing knowledge, competencies, and capabilities among diverse actors and where companies can promote a transition toward the opening of their organisational boundaries. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The multifaceted issues regarding university-industry relations are an increasing focus of attention of both scholars and practitioners, as a means of enhancing current knowledge transfer practices and policies. One of the central questions is whether and how the mechanisms underlying different types of university-industry collaborations (collaborative research, contract research, consulting) influence universities' research commercialisation outcomes (patenting, licensing, spin-off generation). Results of six negative binomial models in Generalized Estimating Equations based on longitudinal panel data on Italian universities, reveal that while collaborative research with industry leads to an increase in patenting activities and spin-off generation, contract research and consulting boost licensing opportunities. Results also reveal complementarities between different types of university-industry linkages, fostering all the types of research commercialisation outcomes. Managerial and policy implications are discussed at the end of this paper. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The new paradigm known as the Internet of Things (IoT) is expected to have a significant impact on business during the next years, as it leads to the connection of physical objects and the interaction between the digital and physical worlds. While prior literature addressing the business implications arising from this paradigm has largely considered IoT as an integrated technology, in this study we examine different components of IoT and assess whether firms concerned with the development of IoT solutions have adopted original business models to exploit the opportunities offered by the specific IoT architecture layer they operate in. In turn, based on primary survey data collected on a sample of IoT Italy association's members, we explore different dimensions of the business model and offer a reinterpretation of the business model Canvas framework adapted to the IoT environment. We show that the specificities of each IoT layer require firms to adopt ad-hoc business models and focus on different dimensions of the business model Canvas. We believe our research provides some important contributions for both academics and practitioners. For the latter, we provide a tool useful for making decisions on how to design the business model for IoT applications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Patent information can be used for strategic planning purposes. Conventional patent analysis has commonly focused on factual information and, in particular, on information extraction, visualisation and interpretation. Less scholarly attention has been devoted to the strategic role of an integrated system of patent intelligence in supporting decision-making in R&D investments. Our paper addresses this gap and explores how patent analysis may benefit those firms that intend capturing the beneficial effects of Open Innovation. We also critically discuss the intrinsic limits of both patent information and patent analysis, which should be taken into account by systems of patent intelligence. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper analyses and discusses the patenting activity of Public Research Organizations (PROs) in Southern European countries. Despite the importance of the topic, studies about the European experience are rare. By using an original database of “American” (USPTO) and “European” (EPO) patents held by PROs in Portugal, Spain, France, Italy and Greece, we observe that the number of university patents in these countries has not increased dramatically during the last years, despite a growing interest at both European and national level during the same period. However, differences do exist among countries in terms of number of granted patents and regulative frameworks. With regard to PROs patenting strategies, we argue that PROs should be progressively able to adopt a “balanced” approach, in order to achieve co-existence between the traditional mechanisms of the so-called “open research system” and the more recent concerns about intellectual property protection, technology transfer and regional development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]