OPEN INNOVATION NETWORKS: THE ROLE OF INNOVATIVE MARKETPLACES FOR SMALL AND MEDIUM ENTERPRISES' VALUE CREATION

The article is focused on the explanation of the benefits of an open innovation approach in order to drive small and medium enterprises within the actual dynamic environment. In particular, the article gives evidence of the capability of the new paradigm in enabling innovative patterns of growth and development, especially for the small segment, not able to overpass a lot of constraints for achieving high performance by itself.We argue that firms' innovation can be carried out through open innovation platforms, in which they will grasp the most important benefits and opportunities in order to catch the value creation.