Collaboration in the Shadow of the Technology Frontier: Evidence from the Flat Panel Display Industry |
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| Authors: | I Kim Wang Hsiao‐shan Yang Douglas J Miller |
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| Institution: | 1. Sawyer Business School, Suffolk University, Boston, MA, USA;2. Institute for Genomic Biology, Business, Economics and Law of Genomic Biology (BioBEL), University of Illinois at Urbana‐Champaign, Urbana, IL, USA;3. College of Business, University of Illinois at Urbana‐Champaign, Champaign, IL, USA |
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| Abstract: | The literature on competition through innovation tends to emphasize the benefits of technological leadership. However, we explain why a capable firm might prefer to shadow the technology leader—remaining slightly behind rather than competing directly at the frontier. On the basis of a formal model and the competitive dynamics literature, we propose that the more benefits a firm gains from collaboration with a technological leader through licensing and supply agreements, the more likely the firm is to take a shadowing position. Our hypotheses, particularly regarding licensing from a technological leader, receive support from a large sample in the flat panel display industry. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. |
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