The Technology Transfer of the Italian Public Research System: the Case of the National Research Council of Italy

This paper deals with the technology transfer activities of the main public research institution in Italy, the Italian Research Council, CNR. A comparative analysis on patenting and licensing performances between CNR and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, MIT has been carried out. Findings show that: research expenses being equal, CNR patents are 26% of MIT's; and, patents being equal, CNR licenses are also 26% of MIT's. This means that CNR impact on domestic competitiveness, in terms of patent licenses, is less than 7% of MIT's. Moreover, while 83% of CNR patents are never licensed to domestic industry, the Italian technology balance of payments shows a perennial deficit. The paper concludes with the identification of the possible causes that may explain such a gap.