SS31: The uneven geography of standards

SPECIAL SESSIONS

Name and affiliations of the session organisers

Kerstin J. Schaefer (Utrecht University)
Carolina Castaldi (Utrecht University)
Emilio Raiteri (Eindhoven University of Technology)

Description

Technical standards are essential in modern economies as they facilitate the interoperability and compatibility of goods and services. They influence economic activities, such as production processes and innovation (Blind 2016; Tassey 2000), and are crucial to coordinate adaptation to environmental challenges, such as rising temperatures and sea levels (Webb et al. 2013). However, standards can lead to uneven spatial development on many levels. The impact of standards on regional economic development and innovation activities can vary greatly between spatial contexts (Murphree & Breznitz 2018). Regional difference might arise for instance due to disparities in knowledge production and IP ownership. Some countries may lack the resources to contribute to the creation of standard-relevant knowledge, while others may struggle to appropriate the benefits of investing in basic research (Raiteri et al. 2022). Moreover, standards can lead to winner- takes-all outcomes, where dominant firms capture most of the value of innovation, leading to skewed distribution of benefits. Particularly actors from global south countries such as China face the standardization gap (Schott & Schaefer 2023), which describes difficulties to contribute to global standard setting based on origin (Ernst et al. 2014; Contreras 2014).

Studying standards is particularly relevant in the context of Geography of Innovation due to their potential to influence the location of economic activities, the coordination of technologies across borders, and the emergence of global value chains. However, there is yet only little research on standards and standardization processes in the Geography of Innovation community. A recent special issue in Research Policy on “Standards and Innovation” has shown the growing interest in the topic. Yet, geographical perspectives on standards are still in the making.

In order to create visibility for this theme and to initiate a discussion, we invite contributions on the following topics for our Special Session:

Spatially uneven participation in global standard-setting
Regional disparities in producing knowledge for standards
Socio-spatial impacts of regional and global standards
Differences in national and regional standard setting
Regional differences in innovation and standardization
Geography and its role across different types of standards

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References

Blind, Knut. 2016. “The Impact of Standardisation and Standards on Innovation.” In Handbook of Innovation Policy Impact, by Jakob Edler, Paul Cunningham, Abdullah Gök, and Philip Shapira, 423–49. Edward Elgar Publishing. https://doi.org/10.4337/9781784711856.00021.

Contreras, Jorge L. 2014. “Divergent Patterns of Engagement in Internet Standardization: Japan, Korea and China.” Telecommunications Policy 38 (10): 914–32. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.telpol.2014.09.005.

Ernst, Dieter, Heejin Lee, and Jooyoung Kwak. 2014. “Standards, Innovation, and Latecomer Economic Development: Conceptual Issues and Policy Challenges.” Telecommunications Policy 38 (10): 853–62. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.telpol.2014.09.009.

Murphree, M., Breznitz, D. Indigenous digital technology standards for development: The case of China. J Int Bus Policy 1, 234–252 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1057

Raiteri, Emilio, Carlo Bottai, and Rudi Bekkers. 2022. “Government-sponsored research and technical standards: Evidence from standard- essential patents.” Paper presented at the 17th Annual European Policy for Intellectual Property Conference, EPIP 2022

Schott, Lennart, and Kerstin J. Schaefer. 2023. “Acceptance of Chinese Latecomers’ Technological Contributions in International ICT Standardization — The Role of Origin, Experience and Collaboration.” Research Policy 52 (1): 104656. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.respol.2022.104656.

Tassey, Gregory. 2000. “Standardization in Technology-Based Markets.” Research Policy 29 (4–5): 587–602. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0048- 7333(99)00091-8.

Webb, E., Friess, D., Krauss, K. et al. A global standard for monitoring coastal wetland vulnerability to accelerated sea-level rise. Nature Clim Change 3, 458–465 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1038/nclimate1756

SPECIAL SESSIONS