Technological innovation in Spain: an analysis based on patents from the United States Patent and Trademark Office (1976 – 2019)

Main Article Content

Lisset Rocío Medina-Moreno
Santiago Manuel López-García

Abstract

Firms are relevant actors in research and development (R&D) and, increasingly, in innovation. The aim of this study is to explore the technological innovation and the patent stock of the Spanish Firms in the long term. It specifically looks into that area of innovation which firms protect through patent registration and which arguably generates the greatest added value in the Spanish economy.


Analysis based on descriptive statistics was conducted using data from the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) database, covering over 40 years from 1976 to 2019.  The approach of the article is identified the high knowledge stocks, as measured by patents, in a specific path given that is a clue of smart innovation entrepreneurial behavior. Key results include that Spanish companies’ propensity to patent remains low. We find that when we consider the entire stock of patents, small companies still represent a significant volume of innovations but each with a limited number of patents, while large companies hold many patents but in very specific sectors.

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How to Cite
Medina-Moreno, L. R., & López-García, S. M. (2023). Technological innovation in Spain: an analysis based on patents from the United States Patent and Trademark Office (1976 – 2019). INNOVA Reseach Journal, 8(3), 71–91. https://doi.org/10.33890/innova.v8.n3.2023.2298
Section
Business and Innovation
Author Biographies

Lisset Rocío Medina-Moreno, Universidad de Madrid, Universidad de los Llanos

Lisset Medina, Doctora en Economía y Gestión de la Innovación por la Universidad Complutense de Madrid, Máster en Economía y Gestión de la Innovación por la Universidad Autónoma de Madrid y Especialista en Ambiente y Desarrollo Local por la Universidad Distrital Francisco José de Caldas. Es investigadora asociada al Instituto Complutense de Estudios Internacionales (ICEI) y miembro del grupo de investigación Gestión y Desarrollo Organizacional (GYDO) avalado por la Universidad de los Llanos. Ha participado como autora en diversas publicaciones y en proyectos de investigación a nivel nacional e internacional. La internacionalización de la tecnología, las patentes y la innovación son sus principales temas de investigación.

Santiago Manuel López-García, Instituto de Estudios de la Ciencia y la Tecnología, Universidad de Salamanca, España

Santiago M. López, Doctor en Ciencias Económicas y Empresariales por la Universidad Complutense de Madrid, es Director del Instituto de Estudios de la Ciencia y la Tecnología de la Universidad de Salamanca (USAL). Es el Presidente de la Asociación Española de Historia Económica y miembro de la Unidad Consolidada de Investigación (acreditación ganada en 2016) especializada en historia de la política científica de la Junta de Castilla y León. Sus principales líneas de investigación son el cambio tecnológico, innovación, historia económica y los estudios de ciencia, tecnología.

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