Individual Inventors, Entrepreneurial Activity and Public Support Measures

This study explores experiences of individual inventors attempting to protect, patent, and utilize their inventions. Furthermore, it describes the extent to which inventors could draw on public support structures. The paper reviews the related literature and derives from it a typology of independent inventors. Drawing on an analysis of Finnish data on independents¿ patenting and entrepreneurial activity, the study explores the extent to which the inventor types correspond with access to certain support measures and commercialization success. The findings seem to confirm our initial typology. Different inventor/patenting constellations appear to concur with different levels of access to and use of support measures. Access to innovation support does not necessarily coincide with commercialization success. At times, inventor categories with some success in utilizing patented inventions coincided with little support and advice from public organizations. Rather than taking an overly cynical view, the paper concludes with suggestions as to how existing support mechanisms can be complemented or modified to better cater to the needs of the various types of independent inventor/entrepreneurs.