Patentes, empresas transnacionais e atividades tecnológicas: uma avaliação da contribuição tecnológica das empresas transnacionais instaladas no Brasil a partir de estatísticas de patentes

Abstract

This short paper evaluates the contribution of transnationals' subsidiaries to the technological activities of Brazil. Patent statistics are used to this evaluation. Data provided by the Instituto Nacional de Propriedade Industrial (INPI) and by the United States Trademark and Patent Office (USPTO) are organized in two databases: 1) invention patents granted to Brazilian residents by the INPI and by the USPTO, between 1980 and 1995; 2) patents applied by Brazilian residents and non-residents to the INPI, between 1988 and 1996. Using these databases this paper assesses the technological activities of foreign firms. The Fortune 500 1998 global corporations are investigated, comparing the transnationals' non-resident patents with the resident patents applied by their subsidiaries. This analysis indicates that the potential contributions of these corporations are not fully by the Brazilian system of innovation.