| Advancements in the emerging Canadian Biotechnology industry will require the continued development of new products and processes. This new product/process development, referred to in this study as innovative activity, is supported by firm activities, characteristics and market structure. Canadian biotechnology firms must understand the factors affecting their innovative activity to compete in a global economy. Moreover, studying the factors that affect innovative activity, specifically for Canadian biotechnology firms, is an important conceptual and empirical question.; This study develops a model to estimate the determinants of innovative activity using data attained from the 2001 and 1999 Biotechnology Use and Development Surveys (BUDS) undertaken by Statistics Canada. Results reveal the importance of a number of key factors affecting innovative activity, including the use of collaborative arrangements, transferring intellectual property among firms and other institutions, and the importance of medium-sized firms. Extensions of the general model are undertaken to account for possible differences associated with the strategic focus of a firm. Additional models have also been developed to investigate alternative measures of innovative activity. |
