Patent Valorization and Business Performance: Evidence from an Italian Public Policy

Paolo Castelnovo, Cinzia Lombardo and Valentina Morretta

No 404198, FEEM Working Papers from Fondazione Eni Enrico Mattei (FEEM)

Abstract: This paper evaluates the effectiveness of a public policy intervention introduced by the Italian government to support the economic valorization of patents held by small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). Using original survey data collected in 2025, the analysis compares firms that benefited from the measure during the 2020-2021 calls with a control group of comparable non beneficiary firms. The study examines patenting behavior, strategies for patent valorization, perceived obstacles, and innovation-related outcomes beyond traditional financial indicators. The results show that the measure effectively increases patenting activity and supports technological maturation, particularly for smaller, younger, and more resource-constrained firms, without crowding out private investment. Rather than directly boosting short-term financial performance, the measure acts as an enabling instrument by strengthening internal capabilities, know-how, and innovation processes, helping firms bridge the gap between invention and market readiness. While impacts on internationalization and market-based patent valorization remain limited, the intervention represents an effective component of a broader SME-oriented innovation policy mix.

Keywords: Research; and; Development/Tech; Change/Emerging; Technologies (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Pages: 36
Date: 2026-06-25
References: Add references at CitEc
Citations:

Downloads: (external link)
https://ageconsearch.umn.edu/record/404198/files/NDL2026-18.pdf (application/pdf)

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:ags:feemwp:404198

DOI: 10.22004/ag.econ.404198

Access Statistics for this paper

More papers in FEEM Working Papers from Fondazione Eni Enrico Mattei (FEEM) Contact information at EDIRC.
Bibliographic data for series maintained by AgEcon Search ().