The aim of this paper is to provide a critical survey of patent systems during the first phase of the industrialization process with a special focus on the British case. Perhaps surprisingly, no consensus has been reached yet as to whether the emergence of modern patent systems exerted a...

The aim of this paper is to provide an overview of the research on the role played by patent systems in the industrialization process (with a special focus on the British case). Perhaps surprisingly, no consensus has been reached yet as to whether the emergence of modern patent systems exerted a...

It has long been recognized that counting patents offers a poor gauge of the extent and value of inventive activity, not least because the quality of patented inventions varies enormously. The Schankerman-Pakes model provides a valuable alternative gauge that utilizes the data from renewal fees,...