Technology entry in the presence of patent thickets

Bronwyn Hall, Christian Helmers () and Georg von Graevenitz

No W16/02, IFS Working Papers from Institute for Fiscal Studies

Abstract: We analyze the effect of patent thickets on entry into technology areas by firms in the UK. We present a model that describes incentives to enter technology areas characterized by varying technological opportunity, complexity of technology, and the potential for hold-up in patent thickets. We show empirically that our measure of patent thickets is associated with a reduction of first time patenting in a given technology area controlling for the level of technological complexity and opportunity. Technological areas characterized by more technological complexity and opportunity, in contrast, see more entry. Our evidence indicates that patent thickets raise entry costs, which leads to less entry into technologies regardless of a firm’s size.

Keywords: IPR; patents; entry; technological opportunity; technological complexity; hold-up (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: K11 L20 O31 O34 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2016-02-12
New Economics Papers: this item is included in nep-bec, nep-com, nep-ino, nep-ipr, nep-pr~, nep-law, nep-sbm and nep-tid
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (1)

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Related works:
Journal Article: Technology entry in the presence of patent thickets (2021)
Journal Article: Technology Entry in the Presence of Patent Thickets (2021)
Working Paper: Technology Entry in the Presence of Patent Thickets (2017)
Working Paper: Technology Entry in the Presence of Patent Thickets (2015)
Working Paper: Technology Entry in the Presence of Patent Thickets (2015)
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