Nurturing the Accumulation of Innovations: Lessons from the Internet

Shane Greenstein

No 15905, NBER Working Papers from National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc

Abstract: The innovations that became the foundation for the Internet originate from two eras that illustrate two distinct models for accumulating innovations over the long haul. The pre-commercial era illustrates the operation of several useful non-market institutional arrangements. It also illustrates a potential drawback to government sponsorship - in this instance, truncation of exploratory activity. The commercial era illustrates a rather different set of lessons. It highlights the extraordinary power of market-oriented and widely distributed investment and adoption, which illustrates the power of market experimentation to foster innovative activity. It also illustrates a few of the conditions necessary to unleash value creation from such accumulated lessons, such as standards development and competition, and nurturing legal and regulatory policies.

JEL-codes: L86 O31 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2010-04
Note: IO PR
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (1)

Published as Shane Greenstein, 2009. "Nurturing the Accumulation of Innovations: Lessons from the Internet," NBER Chapters, in: Accelerating Innovation in Energy: Insights from Multiple Sectors National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.

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Chapter: Nurturing the Accumulation of Innovations: Lessons from the Internet (2011)
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