Three essays on the organizational dimensions of the strategic management of patents

This dissertation is rooted in market for technologies theory and organizational economics to answer to a call for additional research on the processes and organizational mechanisms through which firms implement their patent strategies. The first chapter investigates the organizational configurations that lead to success in granting a patent and capture value from innovation. Using a fuzzy-set Qualitative Comparative Analysis (fs/QCA) of 20 firms, the chapter explores the role of different combinations of centralization of decision-making, cross-functional involvement, and codification of information on the timely ability to secure protection to an invention through patent grant. The second chapter provides a micro analysis of the overall management of the technology licensing process. Using multiple case studies, the research found two configurations to organise the capabilities and governance of decision making in technology licensing. In the first configuration, the management of licensing is based on a combination of internal flow of information, stand-alone coordination mechanisms and inside-out negotiating capabilities, which are the capabilities to convince external partners of the validity of the technology. In the second configuration, licensing is orchestrated through an external flow of information, shared coordination mechanisms and outside-in negotiating capabilities, which are the capabilities to convince members of the same organization of the validity of the license agreement and to moderate the various internal debates related to the agreement. The last chapter examines the role of indemnification clauses on intellectual property (IP) rights in the case of licensing deals and discusses the implications for the optimal design of licensing contracts. The study proposes that indemnification clauses on intellectual property rights operate as signals to share the risk and reduce moral hazard in licensing contracts. Building on market for technology literature and contract theory, the research found that the inclusion of IP indemnification clauses in technology licensing is correlated with a higher likelihood of selecting a payment schemes based on a combination of lump sum and royalty rate. Furthermore, the effect is amplified when the licensee and licensor operate in distant technological domains.

Name dc:type.qualificationname

phd

Level dc:type.qualificationlevel

doctoral

Grantor dc:publisher.institution

City, University of London

Year dc:date.issued

2017

Author dc:creator

• Solinas, Giulia

• HD28 Management. Industrial Management