From the online overview:
This report examines the importance of patents as a measure of invention
to economic growth and explores why some areas are more inventive than
others. Why should we expect there to be a relationship between
patenting and urban economic development? As economist Paul Romer has
written, the defining nature of ideas, in contrast to other economic
goods, is that they are non-rival: their use by any one individual does
not preclude others from using them. Although useful ideas can be freely
transmitted and copied, the patent system guarantees, in principle,
temporary protection from would-be competitors in the marketplace (i.e.
excludability). Thus, one would expect regions to realize at least some
of the value of invention, as has been shown for individual inventors
and companies that patent. Yet there is no guarantee that patents
generated in a specific location will generate wealth in that same
location—a set of conditions (the presence of a skilled and diverse
labor force, an “ecosystem” of businesses providing complementary goods
and services, financing and marketing capabilities among them) have to
be met for invention to be commercialized. Research has established that
patents are correlated with economic growth across and within the same
country over time.
Source: Brookings Institution
Authors: Jonathan Rothwell, José Lobo, Deborah Strumsky and Mark Muro
Download:
Patenting Prosperity: Invention and Economic Performance in the United States and its Metropolitan Areas
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