Is Collaboration Important at All Stages of the Biotechnology Product Development Process?

Using the four Biotechnology Uses and Development surveys of Statistics Canada, the chapter examine the importance of collaborating with firms and public institutions at various stages of product development, from research and development to clinical trials and then on to production and commercialization. The models examine the propensity to have products at a particular stage of development using instrumental variables probit regressions. This chapter finds that while small firms do not benefit from collaborating with firms at the research and development stage, during the clinical trials and in the production phases, collaborating with firms has a strong positive effect. The factors that affect the R&D phase are R&D expenditures, an important IP strategy, revenues from contracts and to some extent contracting out some innovation activities. In later stages of the development process, the number of patents and the diversity of the biotechnology employment team play a more crucial role.