Dyadic collaborations and knowledge domains: A patent-based approach

The paper suggests a patent-based framework that describes how bio-pharmaceutical and technology hardware and equipment companies manage their collaborative activities at the knowledge domain level, analyzing objective data gathered from PATSTAT database. We define the determinants of partners' selection by studying two characteristics of the knowledge fields involved in the technological alliance: their relevance and the technological strategy adopted. Considering only dyadic collaborations, the methodology is performed for both focal companies and their partners, detecting 16 different collaborative behaviors. If compared to the technology hardware and equipment industry, in the bio-pharmaceutical one a higher share of joint patenting activities involving core technological fields was found, signaling that collaborative processes mostly affect the core business of companies. We also uncovered that, in both industries, companies rely on alliances in order to access to competencies that are more relevant for their partners. Regarding the technological strategy pursued through collaborative activities, exploitation is strongly preferred to exploration.