The participation of universities in technology development: do creation and use coincide? An empirical investigation on the level of national innovation systems

Abstract

Relying on patent information, we map the presence and impact of universities in technological landscapes across several major countries and fields. The creation of academic technology is examined by analysing patents applied for by universities. The ‘use’ of academically owned technologies is assessed through citations from industrially owned patents towards university patents. Considering simultaneously the creation and use of academic technology allows one to assess to what extent the creation of academic technology coincides with its subsequent ‘use’ including the role played by geographic proximity in this respect. Our findings reveal a dominance of American universities in terms of creating academic technology, particularly in terms of highly cited academic patents. US firms dominate in terms of citing academic technologies. They limit themselves not to American universities. European and Asian countries vary considerably in terms of creation and use of academic technology and display a more outspoken ‘home bias’.