This study aims to identify the success factors and the underlying structure of commercialization among firms that have received patent technology transfers from Government-Funded Research Institutes (GRIs). While existing literature predominantly foc...
This study aims to identify the success factors and the underlying structure of commercialization among firms that have received patent technology transfers from Government-Funded Research Institutes (GRIs). While existing literature predominantly focuses on supply-side metrics during the technology transfer stage—such as R&D expenditure or the quantitative output of patents—this research adopts a Resource-Based View (RBV) to analyze the factors leading to final commercial success, specifically focusing on the capabilities of recipient firms to internalize technology and the interaction variables between these firms and GRIs.
An analysis of 149 firms that have successfully commercialized or are currently pursuing commercialization of technologies transferred from K-GRIs reveals that traditional supplier-side factors, namely R&D investment and patent excellence, do not exert a significant impact on commercialization performance. Conversely, a firm's complementary assets, technology valuation capabilities, GRI-led commercialization support activities, and prior collaborative experience demonstrate significant positive effects on performance. These quantitative findings are further validated through in-depth interviews with five representative firms.
This study demonstrates that the critical determinants of substantial commercialization success—extending beyond the initial technology transfer phase—reside in consumer-side capabilities and relational capabilities grounded in collaborative interactions, rather than in supplier-oriented inputs. These results establish that achieving commercial success requires a fundamental strategic shift toward consumer-focused and collaboration-oriented support systems and analytical frameworks.