The internationalisation of technology analysed with patent data

This paper presents three new patent-based indicators of internationalisation of technology reflecting international co-operation in research and the location of research facilities of multinational firms. They witness both an increasing trend towards the globalisation of technology in the OECD area and large cross-country differences in the extent of internationalisation. An empirical analysis shows that the degree of technological internationalisation is higher for small countries and for countries with low technological intensity. Finally, two countries are more likely to collaborate if they are geographically close to each other, if they have a similar technological specialisation and if they share a common language. Being member of the European Union involves more cross-border ownership but does not entail more research co-operation than it is implied by the above factors. Nordic countries have a particularly high propensity to collaborate together. © 2001 Elsevier Science B.V.