TIP Case Studies in Innovation

The OECD Working Party on Innovation and Technology Policy (TIP) has recently launched a project on
Case Studies in Innovation that examines innovation patterns in different industry sectors and technology
fields. Three case studies are under way: Energy, Pharmaceutical Biotechnology and Knowledge Intensive
Service Activities (KISA).

The main objective of the project is to develop cross-country analytical work to improve the understanding
of innovation process in specific technology fields and industry sectors. Results will help drawing
conclusions as regards the balance between horizontal innovation policies and more customised measures
that take into account the specificities of innovation processes in selected technology fields or sectors.

The three case studies will adopt the overall framework of National Innovation Systems1 and trace the
processes of knowledge creation, diffusion and utilisation in each sector/technological field. They will also
attempt to identify systemic factors that influence innovation patterns and the ability to capture the
economic benefits of innovation.

The case studies will use a common core of statistical and qualitative information and address a common
set of core issues: i) the R&D funding and performance of the various institutions involved in fostering
innovation (e.g., government, universities, large firms, SMEs and start-ups); ii) the patterns of co-operation
among such institutions (e.g. public-private partnerships, industry-science linkages); and iii) the framework
conditions that affect innovation performance (e.g. intellectual property rights, competition, regulation,
societal concerns, availability of human resources). Nevertheless, each case study will investigate
supplementary issues of relevance to the individual sectors/industries and/or to the participating countries.
The relative emphasis placed on different elements of the innovation system will also vary in accordance
with the different roles they play in each technological field or industry sector.

Energy
The specific objectives of the case study on energy, which is being conducted in collaboration with the
International Energy Agency’s Committee on Energy Research and Technology, are: i) to undertake cross-
country and cross-industry comparisons of innovation processes and R&D productivity in the energy
sector, and ii) to formulate policy recommendations that improve the efficiency of the national energy
innovation systems and the productivity of R&D investments in the energy sector. The study will focus on
fuel cell technology, which is of interest to all the participating countries, but other fields will also be
examined, including oil & gas extraction technologies and clean coal technology. Particular attention will
be paid to the impact of ICT, regulatory changes and environment concerns on R&D in the energy sector
and on the overall efficiency of the national energy innovation systems. The study is also expected to
highlight the challenges associated with innovation in large technological infrastructures (e.g. issues of
technological lock-in and system inter-dependencies). It will examine systemic imperfections that may
hinder the improvement of R&D productivity and the innovative capacity of the energy sector with a
particular emphasis on R&D funding, public-private partnerships in research and technological
development, and IPR management.

1
http://www.oecd.org/EN/about_further_page/0,,EN-about_further_page-46-1-no-no--0-no-no-2,00.html

1
Pharmaceutical biotechnology
The specific goals of the case study on pharmaceutical biotechnology are i) to investigate characteristics of
national innovation systems for pharmaceutical biotechnology, and ii) to develop recommendations that
enhance the effectiveness of policies to encourage the economic performance of the national innovation
systems for pharmaceutical biotechnology. Although the emphasis will be on pharmaceutical
biotechnology, the study will consider the role of the biotechnology sector as a whole in contributing to
innovation in the pharmaceutical area. In this respect, the project will examine the structure and dynamics
of the innovation networks that are formed by public research organisations, biotechnology firms, clinical
research organisations, hospitals, medium-sized and large enterprises to generate new knowledge,
technologies and products. It will analyse the role of demand side factors in the innovation process: lead
markets, product introduction procedures and other market factors that can influence innovation patterns
(such as ethical concerns and public debates over biotechnology products). It will identify systemic
imperfections that are related to interactions between actors and the absence or inappropriate functioning of
specific elements in the innovation system, with specific emphasis on R&D funding, public-private
partnerships, intellectual property rights, product regulation, and the configuration of public health care
systems.

Knowledge Intensive Service Activities (KISA)

The KISA study will attempt to identify good practices in the provision, use and integration of KISAs —
knowledge-intensive services that are provided either internally or externally to firms in the manufacturing
and service sectors and that contribute to innovation processes. The project will assist governments in
assessing the effectiveness of the knowledge-intensive services they provide to firms, considering their
effects on capability-building within firms in different industry sectors and the complementary nature of
publicly and privately provide services. The project will initially focus on the software sector and the
health care services industry; two other industries will be selected for further empirical analysis. The
sectoral studies will investigate the policy implications of viewing innovation systems as sets of
knowledge-intensive service activities which form links between public and private players. They will map
provision of KISA by public, private and hybrid (public-private) organisations in participating countries in
the selected sectors. It will investigate empirically how firms learn and build innovation capability through
the use and integration of KISA.

2
Each case study is led by one or more lead countries that will take primary responsibility for shaping the
work plan and organising the work of other participants, who are expected to contribute national studies to
the effort that conform with the overall work plan. In some case studies, contributors have agreed to
provide the case study groups with results of ongoing efforts that are related to the subject of the case
study, but differ in their scope or methodology.

Participating Countries2

KISA Energy Biotechnology

Australia L tbc
Belgium X
Canada X X C
Czech Republic C
Denmark C
European Commission C
Finland L X
France X tbc
Germany X L
Ireland X
Italy C X
Japan X X
Korea X
Netherlands L
New Zealand tbc
Norway X X L
Portugal
Russian Federation X
Spain X X X
South Africa tbc
Switzerland
United Kingdom X X C
United States L C
BIAC X X

L: Lead country
X: Participant
C: Contributor
tbc: To be confirmed

2
As of 19 February 2003.