This paper provides a quantitative study (N = 268) of patterns of free revealing offirm-developed innovations within embedded Linux, a type of open source software (OSS). Ifind that firms, without being obliged to do so, contribute many of their own developmentsback to public embedded Linux...

The existing theory of modularity explains how modular designs create value. We extend thistheory to address value appropriation. A product or process design that is modular with respect tointellectual property (IP) allows firms to better capture value in situations where knowledge andvalue...

In this paper, I describe and analyze the phenomenon of informal development collaborationbetween firms in the field of embedded Linux, a type of open source software. Toexplain the observed phenomenon of voluntary revealing, I develop a duopoly model ofquality competition. The central...