IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/p/mil/wpdepa/2007-01.html
   My bibliography  Save this paper

Disclosing vs. withholding technology knowledge in a duopoly

Author

Listed:
  • Paolo Giorgio GARELLA
  • Emanuele BACCHIEGA

Abstract

We study firms' incentives to transfer knowledge about production technology to a rival in a Cournot duopoly. In a setting where two technologies are available, a technology is characterized by its associated cost function and no single technology is strictly superior to the other. A firm has superior information if it knows both techniques and the other only one. Cost efficiency may be "reversed" after the voluntary disclosure, so that the rival's costs are improved at the equilibrium level of output. Adding R&D investments to the picture, we find that a firm can decide to invest just for the purpose of acquiring knowledge that will be transferred and not used. Furthermore, for the same point in the parameters space, the acquisition of full knowledge may occur or not as a function of the initial distribution of information

Suggested Citation

  • Paolo Giorgio GARELLA & Emanuele BACCHIEGA, 2007. "Disclosing vs. withholding technology knowledge in a duopoly," Departmental Working Papers 2007-01, Department of Economics, Management and Quantitative Methods at Università degli Studi di Milano.
    • Handle: RePEc:mil:wpdepa:2007-01
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://wp.demm.unimi.it/files/wp/2007/DEMM-2007_001wp.pdf
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    Other versions of this item:

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Hans Gersbach & Armin Schmutzler, 2003. "Endogenous spillovers and incentives to innovate," Economic Theory, Springer;Society for the Advancement of Economic Theory (SAET), vol. 21(1), pages 59-79, January.
    2. d'Aspremont, Claude & Bhattacharya, Sudipto & Gerard-Varet, Louis-Andre, 1998. "Knowledge as a public good: efficient sharing and incentives for development effort," Journal of Mathematical Economics, Elsevier, vol. 30(4), pages 389-404, November.
    3. GABSZEWICZ, Jean J. & GARELLA, Paolo G., 1995. ""Buy it or make it Yourself ?" A Paradox," LIDAM Discussion Papers CORE 1995014, Université catholique de Louvain, Center for Operations Research and Econometrics (CORE).
    4. Jeffrey I. Bernstein & M. Ishaq Nadiri, 1989. "Research and Development and Intra-industry Spillovers: An Empirical Application of Dynamic Duality," The Review of Economic Studies, Review of Economic Studies Ltd, vol. 56(2), pages 249-267.
    5. Jaffe, Adam B, 1986. "Technological Opportunity and Spillovers of R&D: Evidence from Firms' Patents, Profits, and Market Value," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 76(5), pages 984-1001, December.
    6. Nicholas Bloom & Mark Schankerman & John Van Reenen, 2013. "Identifying Technology Spillovers and Product Market Rivalry," Econometrica, Econometric Society, vol. 81(4), pages 1347-1393, July.
    7. Thierry Lallemand & Robert Plasman & François Rycx, 2005. "Why do large firms pay higher wages? Evidence from matched worker‐firm data," International Journal of Manpower, Emerald Group Publishing Limited, vol. 26(7/8), pages 705-723, October.
    8. Stephane Lhuillery, 2006. "Voluntary technological disclosure as an efficient knowledge management device: An empirical study," Economics of Innovation and New Technology, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 15(4-5), pages 465-491.
    9. Bhattacharya, Sudipto & Glazer, Jacob & Sappington, David E. M., 1992. "Licensing and the sharing of knowledge in research joint ventures," Journal of Economic Theory, Elsevier, vol. 56(1), pages 43-69, February.
    10. Holger Görg & Eric Strobl, 2016. "Spillovers from Foreign Firms through Worker Mobility: An Empirical Investigation," World Scientific Book Chapters, in: MULTINATIONAL ENTERPRISES AND HOST COUNTRY DEVELOPMENT, chapter 13, pages 243-259, World Scientific Publishing Co. Pte. Ltd..
    11. Belderbos, Rene & Carree, Martin & Diederen, Bert & Lokshin, Boris & Veugelers, Reinhilde, 2004. "Heterogeneity in R&D cooperation strategies," International Journal of Industrial Organization, Elsevier, vol. 22(8-9), pages 1237-1263, November.
    12. Claude d'Aspremont & Sudipto Bhattacharya & Louis-Andre Gerard-Varet, 2000. "Bargaining and Sharing Innovative Knowledge," The Review of Economic Studies, Review of Economic Studies Ltd, vol. 67(2), pages 255-271.
    13. Milliou, Chrysovalantou, 2006. "Endogenous protection of R and D investments," UC3M Working papers. Economics we066325, Universidad Carlos III de Madrid. Departamento de Economía.
    14. Yannis Katsoutacos & David Ulph, 1998. "Endogenous Spillovers and the Performance of Research Joint Ventures," Journal of Industrial Economics, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 46(3), pages 333-357, September.
    15. Krueger, Alan B & Summers, Lawrence H, 1988. "Efficiency Wages and the Inter-industry Wage Structure," Econometrica, Econometric Society, vol. 56(2), pages 259-293, March.
    16. Jarle Moen, 2005. "Is Mobility of Technical Personnel a Source of R&D Spillovers?," Journal of Labor Economics, University of Chicago Press, vol. 23(1), pages 81-114, January.
    17. Isabelle Brocas, 2004. "Optimal Regulation of Cooperative R&D Under Incomplete Information," Journal of Industrial Economics, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 52(1), pages 81-120, March.
    18. De Fraja, Giovanni, 1993. "Strategic spillovers in patent races," International Journal of Industrial Organization, Elsevier, vol. 11(1), pages 139-146, March.
    19. Flaherty, M Therese, 1980. "Industry Structure and Cost-Reducing Investment," Econometrica, Econometric Society, vol. 48(5), pages 1187-1209, July.
    20. Perez-Castrillo, J. David & Sandonis, Joel, 1997. "Disclosure of know-how in research joint ventures," International Journal of Industrial Organization, Elsevier, vol. 15(1), pages 51-75, February.
    21. Joanna Poyago-Theotoky, 1999. "A Note on Endogenous Spillovers in a Non-Tournament R & D Duopoly," Review of Industrial Organization, Springer;The Industrial Organization Society, vol. 15(3), pages 253-262, November.
    22. Luojia Hu, 2003. "The Hiring Decisions and Compensation Structures of Large Firms," ILR Review, Cornell University, ILR School, vol. 56(4), pages 663-681, July.
    23. Bhattacharya, Sudipto & Glazer, Jacob & Sappington, David E M, 1990. "Sharing Productive Knowledge in Internally Financed R&D Contests," Journal of Industrial Economics, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 39(2), pages 187-208, December.
    24. Katsoulacos, Yannis & Ulph, David, 1998. "Endogenous Spillovers and the Performance of Research Joint Ventures," Journal of Industrial Economics, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 46(3), pages 333-357, September.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Emanuele Bacchiega & Paolo G. Garella, 2008. "Disclosing Versus Withholding Technology Knowledge In A Duopoly," Manchester School, University of Manchester, vol. 76(1), pages 88-103, January.
    2. Milliou, Chrysovalantou, 2006. "Endogenous protection of R and D investments," UC3M Working papers. Economics we066325, Universidad Carlos III de Madrid. Departamento de Economía.
    3. Chrysovalantou Milliou, 2009. "Endogenous protection of R&D investments," Canadian Journal of Economics/Revue canadienne d'économique, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 42(1), pages 184-205, February.
    4. Andrzej Kwiatkowski, 2010. "Non-cooperative incentives to share knowledge in competitive environments," Dundee Discussion Papers in Economics 243, Economic Studies, University of Dundee.
    5. Silipo, Damiano B., 2008. "Incentives and forms of cooperation in research and development," Research in Economics, Elsevier, vol. 62(2), pages 101-119, June.
    6. Chiara CONTI, 2013. "Asymmetric information in a duopoly with spillovers: new findings on the effects of RJVs," Departmental Working Papers 2013-04, Department of Economics, Management and Quantitative Methods at Università degli Studi di Milano.
    7. Gamal Atallah, 2003. "Information sharing and the stability of cooperation in research joint ventures," Economics of Innovation and New Technology, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 12(6), pages 531-554.
    8. Rosenkranz, Stephanie & Schmitz, Patrick W., 2003. "Optimal allocation of ownership rights in dynamic R&D alliances," Games and Economic Behavior, Elsevier, vol. 43(1), pages 153-173, April.
    9. Noriaki Matsushima & Laixun Zhao, 2018. "Technology spillovers and outside options in a bilateral duopoly," ISER Discussion Paper 1039, Institute of Social and Economic Research, Osaka University.
    10. Chiara Conti & Marco A. Marini, 2019. "Are you the right partner? R&D agreement as a screening device," Economics of Innovation and New Technology, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 28(3), pages 243-264, April.
    11. Kaiser, Ulrich, 2002. "An empirical test of models explaining research expenditures and research cooperation: evidence for the German service sector," International Journal of Industrial Organization, Elsevier, vol. 20(6), pages 747-774, June.
    12. Damiano Silipo, 2005. "The Evolution of Cooperation in Patent Races:Theory and Experimental Evidence," Journal of Economics, Springer, vol. 85(1), pages 1-38, July.
    13. Aikaterini KOKKINOU, 2010. "Economic growth, innovation and collaborative research and development activities," Management & Marketing, Economic Publishing House, vol. 5(1), Spring.
    14. Banal-Estañol, Albert & Duso, Tomaso & Seldeslachts, Jo & Szücs, Florian, 2022. "R&D spillovers through RJV cooperation," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 51(4).
    15. Jiaqi Chen & Sang‐Ho Lee & Timur K. Muminov, 2022. "R&D spillovers, output subsidies, and privatization in a mixed duopoly: Flexible versus irreversible R&D investments," Bulletin of Economic Research, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 74(3), pages 879-899, July.
    16. Karbowski, Adam, 2016. "Strategiczne znaczenie kosztu stałego ustanowienia współpracy badawczo-rozwojowej przedsiębiorstw [Strategic meaning of the fixed set-up cost of R&D cooperation]," MPRA Paper 73603, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    17. Castillo, Victoria & Figal-Garone, Lucas & Maffioli, Alessandro & Rojo, Sofia & Stucchi, Rodolfo, 2016. "The Effects of Knowledge Spillovers through Labor Mobility," MPRA Paper 69141, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    18. Young-Ro Yoon, 2008. "Strategic Disclosure of Valuable Information within Competitive Environments," CAEPR Working Papers 2008-022, Center for Applied Economics and Policy Research, Department of Economics, Indiana University Bloomington.
    19. Ouchida, Yasunori & Goto, Daisaku, 2016. "Environmental research joint ventures and time-consistent emission tax: Endogenous choice of R&D formation," Economic Modelling, Elsevier, vol. 55(C), pages 179-188.
    20. Wang, Yanzhi, 2023. "Trade secrets laws and technology spillovers," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 52(7).

    More about this item

    Keywords

    Oligopoly; Information disclosure; R&D Joint Ventures; R&D Consortia; Returns to scale;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • L13 - Industrial Organization - - Market Structure, Firm Strategy, and Market Performance - - - Oligopoly and Other Imperfect Markets
    • O30 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Innovation; Research and Development; Technological Change; Intellectual Property Rights - - - General

    NEP fields

    This paper has been announced in the following NEP Reports:

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:mil:wpdepa:2007-01. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: DEMM Working Papers (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://edirc.repec.org/data/damilit.html .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.