The Bright Side of Patents

Joan Farre-Mensa, Deepak Hegde and Alexander Ljungqvist ()

No 21959, NBER Working Papers from National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc

Abstract: Motivated by concerns that the patent system is hindering innovation, particularly for small inventors, this study investigates the bright side of patents. We examine whether patents help startups grow and succeed using detailed micro data on all patent applications filed by startups at the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) since 2001 and approved or rejected before 2014. We leverage the fact that patent applications are assigned quasi-randomly to USPTO examiners and instrument for the probability that an application is approved with individual examiners’ historical approval rates. We find that patent approvals help startups create jobs, grow their sales, innovate, and reward their investors. Exogenous delays in the patent examination process significantly reduce firm growth, job creation, and innovation, even when a firm’s patent application is eventually approved. Our results suggest that patents act as a catalyst that sets startups on a growth path by facilitating their access to capital. Proposals for patent reform should consider these benefits of patents alongside their potential costs.

JEL-codes: D23 G24 L26 O34 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2016-02
New Economics Papers: this item is included in nep-ent, nep-ino, nep-ipr, nep-pr~, nep-sbm and nep-tid
Note: LE PR
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (13)

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Working Paper: The Bright Side of Patents (2016)
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