Financing constraints have been discussed as a major obstacle to innovation. Small and mediumsized enterprises and start-ups are particularly concerned by such impediments. Venture capital has emerged as a partial solution in some countries, but is only available for start-up firms with major...

Global policy discussions increasingly focus on innovation and the knowledge economy as a driver of long-term growth. In parallel new forms of innovation processes are emerging, notably open innovation and innovation networks stressing the importance of connections between various stakeholders....

The literature on economic growth has identified knowledge expansion as a key propellant. Early research derived this conclusion from the residual that remained after the growth contributions from capital and labour had been accounted for. Later modifications expanded the concept of fixed...

This paper re-visits the empirical failure to establish a clear link between R&D efforts and patent counts at the industry level. It is claimed that the "propensity-to-patent" concept should be split into an "appropriability propensity" and a "strategic propensity". The empirical contribution is...

Venture capital is considered to be the most appropriate form of financing for innovative firms in high-tech sectors. We provide an assessment of venture capital looking at the involvement of venture capital with some of Europe's most innovative and successful companies: those listed on Europe's...

This paper analyses the role of infrastructure endowment and investment in the genesis of regional growth in the European Union. It assesses the economic effects of the existence and improvement of transport networks in light of their interactions with innovation and local socio-economic...