This study focuses on a well-known but yet elusive concept: (technological) lock-in. We summarize what is known about the nature of lock-in and offer a critical view on history- dependent processes based on recent contributions to the literature. We discuss if lock-ins are really inescapable,...

Welche Chancen bieten neue Produktionstechnologien im Kontext der Industrie 4.0 für Hochlohnstandorte, um gegenüber Niedriglohnstandorten wettbewerbsfähiger zu werden und unter Umständen sogar verlagerte Produktion zurückzuholen? Dies wird im vorliegenden Discussion Paper anhand einer...

Der fortschreitende technologische Wandel im Zuge der Digitalisierung bietet enorme Chancen für die deutsche Volkswirtschaft. Er beinhaltet jedoch ebenfalls zahlreiche Herausforderungen. Um die Chancen zu nutzen und gleichzeitig den Herausforderungen zu begegnen, muss der Weg in die...

Die Rolle von Normen innerhalb des Innovationssystems ist sehr umstritten. Es wird sogar vermutet, dass die Zeit der Normung bereits abgelaufen sei. Andererseits wird von einer erstarrenden Regelsetzung gesprochen, die die notwendige Flexibilität für Erfindungen und Innovationen verhindere....

Over the last decade, information technology has contributed significantly to the evolution of financial markets, without, however, revolutionising the way in which financial institutions interact with one another. This may be about to change, as some market players are now predicting that new...

The aim of this paper is an investigation on the role of demand in industrial dynamics. Despite the decades-long debate on demand and innovation, theory still lacks a comprehensive analytical formulation. This paper proposes a model where demand is conceived as a peculiar blend of two...

A model of new-product diffusion is proposed in which a site-percolation dynamics represents socially-driven diffusion of knowledge about the product's characteristics in a population of potential buyers. A consumer buys the new product if her valuation of it is not below the price of the...

The present paper examines one of the central elements of evolutionary thinking - competition formalized by the replicator dynamics mechanism. Using data on product characteristics of automobiles sold on the German domestic market over the period 2001-2006, we construct a competitiveness or...

We study firm-level adoption of packaged software products of almost 4,000 UK sites between 2000 and 2003. We consider all software used in a firm as its software product and categorize it into related, but distinct subsystems: the core subsystem (Operating Systems), and Desktop and Enterprise...

Many governments promote green technological innovation within the automobile sector as a means of combating climate change. Most of these innovations are driven by alternative fuels. Buyer's premiums and governmental investment in service infrastructure are widely used. This paper investigates...