TMCD research on new way of valuing early-stage technology wins Best Paper award
A paper co-authored by ODID’s Professor Xiaolan Fu and Dr Shaomeng Li that offers a new approach to valuing early-stage technologies has been named Best Paper by the Innovation Strategic Interest Group at the 2017 European Academy of Management Annual Conference.
The paper, titled ‘Valuation of early stage technology in the information and communication industry’ was co-authored in partnership with Chao Ai of Huawei Ltd. It presents one of the outcomes of the VEST research project, funded by Huawei Ltd and conducted at ODID’s Technology and Management Centre for Development (TMCD).
The paper explores what determines the value of technology in the Information and Communications Technology industry, utilising a linked dataset of UK start-ups to their patent applications.
The paper relates value indicators that capture either the value of a firm's patents or the uncertainty surrounding the patenting process to the outcomes of the patent commercialization process.
The analysis shows that the value of a firm's patents is correlated to market demand, novelty, and the presence of complementary technology and environment. The number of patents owned by a firm and the composition structure of its patents by International Patent Classification appear to be of limited relevance in determining the value of the patents.
The results suggest a useful new approach to the appraisal of technology and an important guide for decision-making in technology investment, transfer and commercialization.
Professor Fu is TMCD Director. Dr Li is Research Officer on the VEST project.
The EURAM conference is an interdisciplinary platform facilitating a better understanding of innovation, with linkages to economics, finance and management. It took place in Glasgow, UK, on 21-23 June 2017.