The interdependence of intellectual property rights and sales in the manufacturing industry: evidence from the triangle of patents, trademarks, and sales

Firms often struggle with the successful commercialization of innovations, and there is a need for reliable predictors. Prior research suggests that intellectual property (IP) rights play a key role in the commercialization of innovations. However, to what extent can IP rights be used to predict successful commercialization of innovations in the manufacturing industry? Our paper studies the role of patents and trademarks and their complementary and substitutive relationships to predict commercialization success as measured by sales. We also analyze potential reciprocal relationships between commercial success and IP rights. The relationships are explored in a panel dataset of 3590 German Mittelstand firms over a 13-year period. The panel vector autoregressive model results show a persistent positive and complementary relationship between patents and trademarks. A short-lived positive effect of patents on sales growth is followed by a persistent positive effect of sales growth on patents. The positive reciprocal effect between trademarks and sales growth is only short-lived. In an extension, we find persistent positive effects of trademarks on return on assets (ROA) and in turn from ROA on patents. To foster the commercialization success of innovations and economic growth, policymakers should support firms in leveraging both patents and trademarks.