Academic spin-offs are new companies that evolve out from universities as a result of the process of technology transfer from research to commercialisation of new products or services. This paper analyses the experience of Italian spin-offs, from their first introduction in 1999, with specific regard to the following aspects: the early growth and their impact on local economies. The empirical analysis refers to a sample of 210 spin-offs set up between 2000 and 2006. Quantitative analysis is based on annual reports after three, five and seven years from set up. The paper discusses the role of spin-offs on regional economies highlighting qualitative and quantitative aspects of this phenomenon. Two aspects of the Italian situation are different from that of other countries: the first is the low rate of failure at three and five years after start-up (in our sample we observed the closing of spin-offs only in 5% of cases); the second is the lack of high-growth companies, even many years after start-up. These two aspects are linked because they are both a result of the unwillingness of the spin-off to take risks through significant capital investment. This in turn is due to the characteristics of the spin-offs and to the context in which they operate. Many of the spin-off companies are engaged in business services and these activities are characterized by low initial investment and low growth prospects. As regards the Italian institutional context, the main problem is the difficulty for new firms to raise adequate funds during their start-up and subsequent development. From a quantitative point of view, as measurable in terms of turnover or employment, the impact of spin-offs on local economies is marginal. The analysis of the growth process of Italian spin-offs set up between 2000 and 2006 shows that only a low percentage of them showed a significant growth; most of the spin-offs have difficulty in trasforming the initial idea into a sustainable business.
However, the impact of academic spin-offs on local economies must also be assessed on qualitative terms. Spin-offs are important for universities because they help them to raise funds for applied research and promote relations between local government, universities and firms. Spin-offs can be important drivers of local economic development because they are a source of technology entrepreneurs that can help transforming local economies, through the emergence of local technology clusters. Moreover, they represent a connection for other firms to access the expertise and skills within universities, encouraging the development of networks through which new technologies and knowledge can be shared. These relations allow local small firms to build up the technological environment that sustains their innovative capability. Furthemore, being companies in high-tech sectors, they can contribute to production diversification of local economies as well as to the upgrading process of existing productinons.
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Датум:
16.06.2011.
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678
