Technology Strategy and Knowledge Dynamics: The Case of Biotech¹

This study starts with the lack of clarity revealed in the literature so far as to whether technology is a source of differentiation between firms. The use of patent data allows the evolution of the technological profiles of 99 firms active in biotechnology-related applications to be traced. It is tested whether firms converge or diverge in terms both of their technology portfolios and of the way in which they combine their sets of technologies. It is found that the sources of technological heterogeneity between firms change over time, even when controlling for inter-sectoral differences (as in such sectors as pharmaceuticals, food processing, or chemicals). In brief, firms rely on an increasingly similar scientific corpus, the exploitation of which is gradually becoming firm specific.