SEMINAR SERIES
Applied Microeconomics Seminar
Makoto Kadowaki(Specially Appointed Assistant Professor, Hitotsubashi Institute for Advanced Study, Hitotsubashi University)
- Date&Time:
- 2024.9.13 (Fri) 10:30-12:00
- Venue:
- Seminar Room 108 on 1F, Faculty of Law and Faculty of Economics, East Bldg., Yoshida Campus, Kyoto University
- Language:
- English
- Contact:
- Jun Nakabayashi
(Title)
"Early Disclosure and Patent Value: How Do You Know You Are a Pioneer?"
Abstract:
While the patent system plays a dual role in promoting innovation through protection and disclosure, it is widely believed that early disclosure of a patent application weakens patent protection by enhancing knowledge spillovers. However, pre-grant publication enables early establishment of the priority of the invention, which may enhance appropriation. Using the introduction of pre-grant publication in Japan as a natural experiment, we find that early disclosure increased the rejections (and abandonments) of the subsequent duplicative patent applications by others more than the grants of their follow-on patents. As a result, the patent value significantly increased on average. Consistently, the pre-grant publication accelerated and increased the grant of one’s own follow-on inventions, more so when competition is significant. Thus, we find that pre-grant publication has a significant effect of promoting appropriation through early determination of who is a pioneer.