Crowdsourcing of inventive activities: definition and limits Online publication date: Thu, 13-Oct-2011
by Julien Pénin; Thierry Burger-Helmchen
International Journal of Innovation and Sustainable Development (IJISD), Vol. 5, No. 2/3, 2011
Abstract: The purpose of this paper is twofold: First we define the concept of Crowdsourcing of Inventive Activities (CIA) and we emphasise its differences with the crowdsourcing of routine activities and the crowdsourcing of content. Then we stress the advantages and limits of CIA by using two complementary theories of the firm: Transaction cost theory and the evolutionary theory of the firm. Specifically, we show that CIA may emerge only if knowledge is sufficiently codified and if a legal protection is possible (e.g. via patents). This work therefore builds theoretical predictions that can be tested in further works. Beyond this analysis, our work underlines issues for the traditional theories of the firm that will have to be clarified: for instance, does the emergence of crowdsourcing lead to rethinking the reasons why firms exist and the definition of their boundaries?
Existing subscribers:
Go to Inderscience Online Journals to access the Full Text of this article.
If you are not a subscriber and you just want to read the full contents of this article, buy online access here.Complimentary Subscribers, Editors or Members of the Editorial Board of the International Journal of Innovation and Sustainable Development (IJISD):
Login with your Inderscience username and password:
Want to subscribe?
A subscription gives you complete access to all articles in the current issue, as well as to all articles in the previous three years (where applicable). See our Orders page to subscribe.
If you still need assistance, please email subs@inderscience.com