In Germany, R&D subsidies are an important tool to support innovation in the private sector. This paper studies the welfare effects of R&D subsidies distributed through the German federal government’s thematic R&D programs between 1994 and 2011. The analysis is based on a structural model of...

Direct public support for business R&D is a well-established remedy to market failures, yet empirical evidence on its effectiveness yields conflicting results. The paper investigates the impact of the first European public R&D grant program targeting small and medium enterprises (i.e. the SME...

This paper analyses the impact of the Italian Startup Act which entered into force in December 2012. This public policy provides a unique bundle of benefits, such as tax incentives, public loan guarantees, and a more flexible labor law, for firms registered as "innovative startups" in Italy....