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International Management - Rodchenko VV

3.2. The state and private business in the innovation process in the countries of Western Europe

More than three decades before the West European capital first task is to resist the US, and then the Japanese "invasion". All this time, the national authorities of the leading European countries (Germany, UK, France) play a significant role in the formation of national scientific and technological potential and supporting corporations to raise the competitiveness of its own production and the national economy.

Despite the variety of administrative structures, the difference in the principles of macroeconomic policy and tactical reasons, there are many common points for Western European countries. State scientific and technical concept of these countries is based on promoting "national champions" - a small number of large corporations, to compete with the USA and Japan leading companies. He gets the lion's share of public funds for industrial R & D. For example, in the UK more than 80% of government subsidies for research and development in microelectronics accounted for 5 firms, more than 50% of whom received "Ferranti".

Unlike Japan and the United States, Western European national authorities have expressed an interest in the results of research and development with a significant delay, and do not take measures against the dissemination of new technologies among manufacturers. Therefore, the Western European innovation cycle management mechanism is often referred oriented technology, meaning the emphasis on research and development, rather than on their industrial application.

The concentration of financial resources in R & D and the creation of a "bank of ideas" in the hands of a small group of major corporations has weakened incentives to improve the efficiency of research and implementation of new technologies in production. Orientation of public research and development to "national champions" has led to a weakening of competition within industries and slow the spread of advanced technologies and developments in other sectors of the economy. This policy resulted in a clear lag of Western European manufacturers from the USA and Japan leading corporations in the late 80-ies of XX century. The disappointing results of the scientific and technical policy of these years have forced the government of Western European countries to look for new ways and mechanisms to address the problem of reducing the technological gap with the world's leading scientific and technical progress.

some arrangements at the national level have been made. In the Federal Republic of Germany was founded Federal Ministry for Research and Technology. In some other countries the responsibility for the implementation of science and technology policy was assigned to the Ministry of Trade and Industry. States have contributed to the revival of business venture. Finally, most of the EEC countries (except Germany) have weakened the rigidity of the antimonopoly legislation, allowing science and technology ( "predkonkurentnuyu") co-operation between the programs.

Of particular importance in this situation we have acquired various forms of interaction between the state and private business: joint public-private institutes and laboratories, cooperation of scientists, the development of joint programs and projects, the exchange of information flows, and so on..

In the 80 years in search of arms accelerate the process of technological innovation, is the condition of the restructuring of national economies and the growth of their competitiveness, the government leading European capitalist countries have taken measures to strengthen the implementation of the results of research and development in the industry of public research organizations.

Researchers R. van Talder and Juneau are three main reasons for the transfer of Western science and technology policy at the European level. First, the beginning of the 80s the national scientific and financial capacity largely been exhausted. In order to mobilize additional resources and to obtain the know-how needed to develop international co-operation (it began to successfully implement only in the mid 90-ies). Second, taken at the national level, the program proved to be ineffective because of the small size of the market. Third, the competitive position of the European industry (especially in microelectronics) further deteriorated.

Coordination of European science and technology policy from a single interstate center (EEC) should help to define the priorities that eliminates parallel research and development, significantly reduce their cost.

However, there are a number of factors that reduce the effectiveness of interstate regulation and preventing the implementation of a unified Western European science and technology policy.

European Economic Community has not yet managed to fully realize the benefits of interstate regulation NTP due to lack of an overall development strategy. Ongoing programs and projects reflect the attempt of Western European countries to catch up with the US and Japan in certain sectors. Meanwhile, a non-comprehensive approach is fraught with grave danger. Focus on the elimination of the "hole" in one place, western European bodies lose sight of what their competitors at this time successfully conquer new markets in rapidly developing industries. The leaders of the national governments of Western countries often place national interests above the interests of a single Community strategy, including in science and technology policy. Joint projects do not eliminate competition between the parties, and hence the government support "their" firms. In general, the scientific and technical policy of the states of Europe in the 90s can be considered as an attempt to establish a foothold for further breakthrough in those types of production that will determine the economic potential of the world in the coming decades.

According to US experts, the factors that led to the dominance of large firms are not currently fully. First, even small companies can now relatively easy to obtain financial resources; Secondly, specialized companies can provide all the necessary information for small firms; Third, diversified companies are extremely difficult to be kept on a set of commodity markets; Fourth, the use of flexible manufacturing systems undermines the advantages of large-scale production in large diversified companies; Fifth, many of the functions performed within the framework of a large company (transportation, sales of products), can now be carried out by specialized companies.

The advantages of large companies related to obtaining "economies of scale", can be contrasted with the complex multi-level governance, which is sometimes negates those benefits.

Small business is inherently more innovative than large, since the very creation of small firms most often associated with the attempt of commercial use of any innovation. In addition, for small firms innovation less risky, since the potential failure does not undermine the commercial reputation of the rest of the company's products.

The advantages of small firms should include the fact that they spend much less time on the process of developing a new product (an average of 2.3 years, while the large - 3.1). Roughly equivalent of the invention cost small firms are much cheaper -.. To 87 thousand dollars, while the largest - at $ 2 million. (In the whole of Western Europe).

The innovative character of small firms create the economic environment in which large companies are much more profitable to buy any other companies developed technology to produce a new type of product for themselves, rather than developing its own, or absorb small company developer.

In almost all industrialized countries, including the countries of Western Europe, small business research operates in the following forms:

1) small promotional (VC) companies created by the inventors on the venture capital loans for industrial development and the commercialization of scientific and technological achievements;

2) small firms organized for the implementation of scientific and technical achievements that are a side effect of the implementation of program-targeted R & D contracts of government departments with universities, industrial corporations, non-profit research institutions, - the so-called-spinof companies ( "offspring");

3) small firms consumers services and software targeted R & D; small creative teams or project teams; experts individually come up with ideas (inventions).

A common feature of the activities of small high-tech firms is their predominant focus on the latter stages of the innovation cycle - organization development activities; such firms are designed to provide the technological readiness of the product to production.

According to the degree of concentration cost the sphere of scientific activity in the developed countries of Western Europe are now well ahead of the sphere of production. Thus, the share of the largest 300 UK companies account for 77% of the cost of research, including the share of the four largest - 25.5%.

If we consider the French industry is, according to the 1996 research are constantly more than 1,500 enterprises - 3.5% of their total number. Research firms account for about 5% of industrial enterprises; in big business, their share is 55% and in small - 2%.

Some researchers often stress that it is in small enterprises were invented electron tube TV, air conditioning unit, a transistor mixer and even a jet engine. However, the role of small high-tech companies is not limited to improving the scientific and technical level of production. They have a great influence on the dynamics of the national economy, the intensity of its restructuring. Therefore, government agencies tend to provide them with direct and indirect support.

state support system has a common basis - the desire for a favorable tax, credit and other financial conditions for the development of small-scale scientific and technical firms.

For example, in the UK, along with support for innovative programs both large and small companies (subsidies on industrial products, loans and so on. P.), There is loan insurance system, which take small firms. It aims to secure bank loans and guarantees return of medium-term loans (for two to seven years).

A significant part of the benefits small businesses receive, through the European Innovation Bank and the European Coal and Steel Company, which give him a special fixed-repayable loans. Along with the system of regional grants and the regional selective assistance they contribute to the development and protection of small business.

The system of taxation for small businesses and provide significant benefits - reduced tax rates for special expenses, reduced corporate tax, the abolition of tax on stocks, accelerated depreciation, etc...

Big tax breaks are also small firms in Italy. In particular, they were abolished duties on the property and gifts, as well as acquired income tax. Tax on income distribution, increase the limit on income, exempt from taxation. Small firms may be authorized for additional investments and accelerated depreciation.

In France there is a national agency for the implementation of inventions ( "Anwar"), which compensates for the small and medium-sized companies the costs of introduction of new technology within the 25-30% of the amount spent and covers up to 50% of the costs of these enterprises on R & D related to the development of new products and technologies. The government of that state has reduced by 50% tax on profits of these enterprises during the first five years.