• Asian Journal of Innovation and Policy
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• v.2 no.1
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• pp.1-19
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• 2013

As the catch-up innovation system was exposed to a new competition environment in which second-tier catch-up countries reduced the gap with Korea and advanced Korean firms entered into the frontier product market, it is experiencing system delay in terms of organizational and policy change. Therefore, innovation policy needs to be reorganized from a dynamic perspective to analyze the problems in the transition period and enable the system to overcome organizational and institutional delays. This article investigates the characteristics of transition periods in terms of external environment changes and internal socio-economic pressures. Based on the analysis of environment changes and catch-up system characteristics, it suggests the framework for policy intervention, direction, and practical principles for post catch-up innovation policy. In particular, it suggests the network-based developmental state and policy implementation in order to overcome the limitation of centralized developmental state of catch-up periods.

• Journal of East Asia Management
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• v.3 no.2
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• pp.43-64
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• 2022

Exploring innovations for latecomers to catch up has been a popular concern in industry and academia. Over the last decade, more and more East Asian latecomer firms have moved beyond imitation and are delivering innovative products and services to the market. However, the semiconductor latecomers from China have limited success in catching up with more mature semiconductor firms. Our study examines how semiconductor latecomers to break through the latecomer's dilemma by innovation and achieve catch-up. We use a single-case approach for the Semiconductor Manufacturing International Corporation (SMIC) vertical development process to analysis its innovation path of catching up. The study's results showed that SMIC relied on the government's policy and funding support, and based on the strategic endurance of entrepreneurs, it persisted in technology R&D investment and independent innovation for 20 years. SMIC finally smashed the dilemma of latecomers and successfully achieved catch-up. With these findings, we believe that the path of catching up innovation for semiconductor latecomers should be equipped with independent innovation of technology, strategic leadership of entrepreneurs and support of government policies. As these factors are combined, latecomer firms' position is expected to rise and catch-up will become visible. Our study contributes to some enlightenment on the innovation path for latecomers in China and global semiconductors to achieve their catch-up.

• Asian Journal of Innovation and Policy
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• v.5 no.1
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• pp.1-18
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• 2016

Catch-up is a well-known and familiar terminology for innovation scholars in developing countries such as Taiwan, Korea and China. The strategy, however, is too difficult to perform in each industry. This study looks into a catch-up strategy that Apple and Xiaomi used and examines the results on the creative imitation of business model in the smartphone industry. It is quite surprising that even Apple is based on catch-up strategy. They wanted to catch-up Nokia. Our case study shows that these two companies quickly caught up with the leaders, and the common feature of their strategy is characterized as creative imitation of business model. Creative imitation of business model is different from creative imitation of innovation. Furthermore, this research confirms that the creative imitation of business model leads to aggressive creative innovation.

• Journal of Science and Technology Studies
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• v.6 no.2 s.12
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• pp.1-44
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• 2006

This paper aims to analyse post catch-up innovation activities of Korean firms. Traditional approach focused on incremental innovation through fast catch-up process. Recently, Korean firms present new patterns of innovation activities. It includes the development of state-of-the-art frontier products in capital intensive manufacturing sector, the achievement of architectural innovation through adopting newly developed components and the creation of new market based on the basic technological capabilities. This paper attempts to formulate conceptual framework for analysing post catch-up innovation activities and to analyse stylized facts of post catch-up activities based on the case studies on technology based small and medium Korean firms.

• Journal of Korea Technology Innovation Society
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• v.9 no.3
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• pp.435-450
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• 2006

As technological capabilities have enhanced, the patterns of innovation activities of latecomer firms changed to post catch-up mode. The purpose of this research is to provide conceptual frameworks for post catch-up mode of innovation activities, based on the case study on Korean mobile phone industry. It presents the possibilities of architectural innovation of latecomer firms, which is stimulated by the co-operative innovation activities between component suppliers and users from the initial stage of final product development.

• Journal of Korea Technology Innovation Society
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• v.7 no.3
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• pp.581-606
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• 2004

Korean Innovation Systems are in transition from catch-up regime to post catch-up regime. This paper tries to analyse the change of scientific and technological practices in the public sector of Korea Innovation Systems. This paper focus on the way public sector scientific and technological practices are regulated and contribute to private sector. It is argued that self-governing practice of public S&T community is being enhanced and the requests of private sector for the public sector's contribution through research activity are reinforced in emerging post catch-up regime.

• Journal of Technology Innovation
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• v.21 no.1
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• pp.109-139
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• 2013

The objective of this study attempt to examine the prospect whether conventional catch-up theory is also applicable to knowledge intensive industry like Open Source Software(OSS), and the implication from this study can be working as a stepping stone for followers. To do this, we conducted Korean SW firm's interview, and examined U.S. firm's archivings and second source of informations by means of empirical study. We use the inflection point of paradigm shift and difference of technology regime as a framework for empirical study of catch-up process between U.S. and Korean OSS firms. We find that conventional catch-up theory is no more applicable to explain OSS firm's catch-up processes. We also identified the elements that will accelerate the catch-up processes more effectively from the comparison of technology regime between U.S. and Korean OSS firms. As a result, we diagnose the limitation of conventional catch-up theory and discuss the new technology regime which will, ironically, promote the catch-up processes from the condition of low appropriation.

• Journal of Technology Innovation
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• v.20 no.1
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• pp.75-114
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• 2012

Transition from imitation based catch-up to new value creation based post catch-up innovation system is becoming the main issue for Korea. The notion of post catch-up research highlights the understanding of new patterns of innovation and the interrelationship among innovating agents within systems of innovation. More specifically, it is a context specific framework which accommodates discontinuum of technological innovation from the past and a creation of new organizational arrangement and institutions. Moreover, post catch-up approach follows the tradition of development, institutional and evolutionary theories context. This paper, therefore, explores whose focus is on the possibility of new theoretical development and new research agenda.

• Journal of Science and Technology Studies
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• v.16 no.1
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• pp.63-89
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• 2016

The purpose of this article is to re-interpretate 'Post Catch-up Studies' on the Korean innovation system with the framework of 'Transition Studies'. The viewpoints of the vision, research area and system innovation process of Post Catch-up studies are reviewed and reconfigurated. The Transition Studies concepts of Sustainability, Coevolution of industry and society, and transition management are introduced into the Post-catch up Studies and discussed. It is suggested that Post catch-up studies should support sustainability system transition and make use of transition management tools for the sustainable post catch-up innovation and policy.

• Journal of Technology Innovation
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• v.17 no.1
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• pp.49-67
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• 2009

As technological capabilities have enhanced, the patterns of innovation activities of latecomer firms changed to post catch-up mode. The purpose of this research is to analyze the post catch-up innovation patterns of technology-intensive small and medium firms of Korea. The innovation patterns can be divided into three types: the technology deepening innovation type, the new technology based innovation type and the architectural innovation type. The characteristics of the technology deepening innovation type are cumulative technological learning and the integration of new generic technology and existing technologies. The characteristics of new technology based type are the acquisition and revelations of new basic knowledges from former incubating organizations such as large firms and universities. The characteristics of the architectural innovation type are the learning of system architecture knowledge from former organization and interactive learning with user firms. These post catch up innovations also have some general characteristics. They effectively exploited the windows of opportunities which are opened in the middle of technological paradigm change.