International inter-firm transfer of technology decisions and interactions : case studies from Swedish firms' joint ventures and licensing operations in China

Sammanfattning: The technological assets of a firm are one of the main sources of its competitive power. In recent decades, the transfer of technology has become an important element of international business, sometimes as the explicit objective of international transaction, at other times, as the side effect of the sale/purchase of goods. Internationally, technological assets are valorized in productive activities and transferred through foreign direct investment (FDI) in the form of wholly-owned subsidiaries (intra-firm transfer) or indirectly, through joint ventures and licensing (inter-firm transfer). This study deals with the latter (IITT) and maintains that IITT is a complex growth and development process. Any manifest pattern in this process has to be understood and explained in light of not only all the elements but also the actors that are involved. As the main conceptual theme and purpose of the study, it is argued that IITT is not limited to the actions (decisions) of the firm supplying the technology, rather it is also the outcome of decisions taken by the enterprise receiving the technology as well as the interactions that take place between the technology-supplier firm (TS) and the technology-receiver firm (TR). It is further argued that IITT is a long dynamic process which develops through several stages. The study has a dual purpose: theoretical and empirical. On the one hand, it aims at conceptualizing IITT through model construction and, on the other, it seeks to find empirical support for the developed model in case studies of the Swedish firms transferring technology to China via joint venture and licensing in four different industries. The results of the study which support the model also point to special issues of technology transfer to China. Including the role of the government and commitment of the TS and TR. The tudy maintains that: IITT commences through a number of short-term exchanges but the process is a long-term relationship built upon mutual bonds; the interaction between TS and TR becomes institutionalized into a set of roles that each side expects the other to perform in terms of both responsibilities and decisions, and can thus involve both cooperation and conflict; lack of active commitment to the transfer process by either TS or TR is likely to result in less than effective transfer; the transfer of information is a necessary precondition for the effective IITT and the effectiveness of the transfer mode is dependent on the level of communication and mutual understanding achieved between TS and TR.