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Analysis of South Korean Technological Capabilities in Electronics and Telecommunications (1999-2019)

Authors

  • Humberto Merritt Instituto Politécnico Nacional

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.32870/mycp.v11i33.811

Keywords:

Korea, electronics, technological capabilities, industrial innovation

Abstract

South Korea transformed itself from an agrarian nation in the 1960s, to a highly industrialized country thanks to the governmental stimulus to technology exports. Industrial policies initiated in the 1980s paved the way to a knowledge-based economy, with information and communication technologies (ICT) becoming the main driver of innovative activity. This paper examines the construction of technological capabilities in this Asian nation by analyzing the patents filed through the Patent Cooperation Treaty in the field of electronics and telecommunications. Empirical evidence suggests that the design of policies to promote innovation was particularly successful in the areas of semiconductors, communication networks, TV and mobile telephony.

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Author Biography

Humberto Merritt, Instituto Politécnico Nacional

Ph.D. in Science and Technology Policy from the Science Policy Research Unit (SPRU) of the University of Sussex in Brighton, UK. He holds a Master's degree in Economics from El Colegio de México and a Bachelor's degree in Economics from UAM Iztapalapa. He is a full-time professor at the National Polytechnic Institute of Mexico and has been a visiting researcher at the University of Antwerp, Belgium, Lund University, Sweden, and Portland State University in the USA. His area of specialization is the economics of innovation and knowledge. He has publications on the impact of new technologies on the economy and society; the academy-industry linkage; the role of research centers in industrial innovation, as well as on the effect of technological change on employment and on the technological-commercial relationship between South Korea, Mexico, and Latin America. He is a National Researcher Level I of CONACyT of Mexico.

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Published

2022-08-31 — Updated on 2022-12-14

Versions

Issue

Vol. 11 No. 33 (2022): September-December

Section

Analysis

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