Dynamic Analysis of Innovation and Licensing: The Effects of Intellectual Property Rights Protection

Licensing is one of the major sources of international technology transfer to developing countries. This paper clarifies how strengthening intellectual property rights (IPRs) affect innovation and licensing by making use of a quality-ladder type of dynamic general equilibrium model. We explore not only the long-run effects but also the short-run effects of the policy by fully examining the dynamic characteristics of the model. The model shows that stronger IPRs promote innovation and technology transfers in both the long run and the short run if IPR protection greatly reduces the negotiation cost of licensing.