The Patent Paradox Revisited: Determinants of Patenting in the US Semiconductor Industry, 1980-94

Bronwyn Hall and Rose Marie Ham

No 7062, NBER Working Papers from National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc

Abstract: This paper examines the patenting behavior of firms in an industry characterized by rapid technological change and cumulative innovation. Recent evidence suggests that semiconductor firms do not rely heavily on patents, despite the strengthening of US patent rights in the early 1980s. Yet the propensity of semiconductor firms to patent has risen dramatically over the past decade. This paper explores this apparent paradox by analyzing the patenting activities of almost 100 US semiconductor firms during 1980-94. The results suggest that stronger patents may have facilitated entry by firms in niche product markets, while spawning patent portfolio races' among capital-intensive firms.

Date: 1999-03
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Published as Hall, Bronwyn H & Ziedonis, Rosemarie Ham, 2001. "The Patent Paradox Revisited: An Empirical Study of Patenting in the U.S. Semiconductor Industry, 1979-1995," RAND Journal of Economics, The RAND Corporation, vol. 32(1), pages 101-28, Spring.

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Related works:
Working Paper: The Patent Paradox Revisited: Determinants of Patenting in the US Semiconductor Industry, 1980-94 (2000)
Working Paper: Patent Paradox Revisited: Determinants of Patenting in the U.S. Semiconductor Industry, 1980-94 (1999)
Working Paper: Patent Paradox Revisited: Determinants of Patenting in the U.S. Semiconductor Industry, 1980-94 (1999)
Working Paper: The Patent Paradox Revisited: Determinants of Patenting in the US Semiconductor Industry, 1980-94 (1999)
Working Paper: The Patent Paradox Revisited: Determinants of Patenting in the US Semiconductor Industry, 1980-94 (1999)
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