Geography Reference
In-Depth Information
BOX 4.3
MNEs TECHNOLOGICAL PROFILES
AND THE GEOGRAPHICAL HIERARCHY:
A CASE STUDY ON FOUR EUROPEAN
UNION ECONOMIES
The existence of a
geographical hierarchy
of European research
centres has been explored by examining the technological profile
of both nationally- and foreign-owned MNEs located within regional
centres of excellence. Patent data (USPTO) are used to analyse the
location of research activity across space in Italy, France, Germany
and the UK over the 1969-95 period. In terms of the distribution
of foreign MNE technological activity, the UK was the main host in
Europe of foreign-owned patenting activity in the early years, whilst
since the 1970s Germany has been the most attractive location.
Italy is further behind, although recording an increase in the propor-
tion of foreign activity carried out in the country since the mid-1980s,
whilst France displays an intermediate position, with a rather stable
share of foreign-owned patenting through time, increasing particu-
larly since the beginning of the 1990s. In terms of penetration - that
is, the percentage of foreign patenting on total national patenting
by large MNEs - the overall proportion of foreign-owned research
located in Europe has on average increased over this time period
with a most noticeable rise in recent years (almost 29 per cent in
1991-95). Whilst in the UK and Italy foreign-owned firms constitute
a substantial and rising proportion of aggregate activity (with shares
of 45.2 per cent and 57.5 per cent respectively in 1991-95), the
equivalent share in Germany is approximately 17 per cent at the end
of the period considered. In France the share of foreign-owned firms
on the overall total is 25.6 per cent for the 27 years.
Considerable sub-national differences exist across the four
EU economies. In the case of the UK, France and Italy, a very
strong concentration of the overall technological activity carried
out by MNEs (both indigenous and foreign-owned) in the period
1969-95 is found in just a few regions. Whilst both foreign-
owned and indigenous firms concentrate their research in the
same region in the UK (the South East, with 47 per cent of the
total), in France (Île de France, with 58.3 per cent) and in Italy
(Lombardia, with 52.8 per cent), the same does not hold for
Germany, where Nordrhein Westfalen hosts the highest share of
indigenous activity (29 per cent), but only represents the second
