Consumer preferences and product and process R&D

• 成果类型: Article
• 署名作者: Saha, Souresh
• 署名单位: National University of Singapore
• 刊物名称: RAND JOURNAL OF ECONOMICS
• ISSN/ISSBN: 0741-6261
• DOI: 10.1111/j.1756-2171.2007.tb00054.x
• 发表日期: 2007
• 页码: 250-268
• 关键词: life-cycle; INNOVATION; industry; monopoly; size

摘要

Firms often conduct both product and process R&D. Consumer preferences typically play a vital role in determining these R&D choices. The economics literature, however, has mostly ignored the interrelationship between the R&D choices of firms and consumer preferences. I study product and process R&D from the perspective of their relationship with consumer preferences. In doing so, I find a novel distinction between the two kinds of R&D. This distinction can explain several empirical observations regarding firms' choices of the two, and can also potentially enable us to better empirically identify the two.