Milad Abbasiharofteh (p), Miriam Krüger, Jan Kinne, Bernd Resch, David Lenz

Gyonggu Shin

The lack of large-scale data revealing firms’ interactions has constrained empirical studies. Utilizing relational web data has remained unexplored to remedy this data problem. We constructed a Digital Layer by scraping the inter-firm hyperlinks of 600,000 German firms and linked the Digital Layer with several traditional indicators. We showcase the use of this developed dataset by testing whether the Digital Layer data can replicate several theoretically motivated and empirically supported stylized facts. The results show that the intensity and quality of firms’ hyperlinks are strongly associated with firms’ innovation capabilities and, to a lesser extent, with hyperlink relations to geographically distant and cognitively close firms. Finally, we discuss the implications of the Digital Layer approach an evidence-based assessment of sectoral and place-based innovation policies.

László Szerb (p), Stefan Apostol, Richárd Farkas

Milad Abbasiharofteh

In the early years of digital revolution there were high expectations about the democratization of internet and the decrease or even the disappearance of regional disparities. Internet based technologies are relatively easy to develop, and diffuse. Traditional diffusion barriers like information asymmetries, high costs, and tacit knowledge do not really inhibit internet technologies. However, expectations have proved to be not true; in fact, regional difference seem to remain or even decrease in the digital era. The first digital divine reflected to differences in internet access. Even after controlling for internet access alterations, there are still considerable differences exist about the use of digital technologies by the population called the second-level digital divide. However, results were not robust enough to provide strong support for the digital diffusion divide amongst firms.
In this paper we are aiming to test the presence of digital diffusion divide postulate of ten WEB based technologies in regional level by using Crunchbase data for the European NUTS2 regions in the 2000-2022 time period. We test three hypothesis:

Hypothesis 1: Geography plays a significant role in Web based technology diffusion the in the European NUTS 2 regions; there is a significant spatial effect.

Hypothesis 2: Developed, highly agglomerated places are the starting points of technology diffusion in the European NUTS 2 regions.

Hypothesis 3: Web-based technology diffusion is significantly stronger in developed regions as compared to less developed regions – positive per capita GDP effect

If all three hypothesis are valid, then we have strong evidences that digital divide exists among European regions.
A spatial autoregressive estimation methodology results reinforced strong spatial effect in all cases; however in a varying degrees. All technologies diffuse from the classical development center of UK, France, Netherlands, West German, Belgium, Swedish, Danish regions. Hypothesis 3 got only partial support, the per capita GDP had varying effect on web-based technology diffusion – seven times positive three times negative effect. Altogether, we had strong evidences about the exitence of third level digital diffusion divide .

Andrea Ferloni (p), Céline Rozenblat

László Szerb

Contemporary transitions, such as the one towards Electric Vehicles (EVs), involve complex interactions between the automotive, electric, and battery technologies among others (Markard, 2018). Scholars of transitions are increasingly considering complementarities between multiple sectors (Andersen et al., 2020), but these approaches need to be connected to an understanding of the geography of transitions (Binz et al., 2020) because inter-sectoral exchanges are embedded within global innovation networks that exploit the advantages that regional agglomerations and global connectivity can provide to innovation. Following Boschma et al. (2017), we propose to combine insights from transition studies and economic geography, to understand how local agglomerations can support the recombination of knowledge and resources that is needed to innovate in EVs, and what is the role of related sectors.

EV sales are increasing and today they represent 9% of new registrations (IEA, 2022). The automotive industry is traditionally capital-intensive and producer-driven because major car firms exert a strong power on all the value chain and influence over suppliers (Sturgeon et al., 2008). Yet today, some high value-added parts in the EV value chain are located outside automotive firms, particularly those related to batteries, electric engines, and software for autonomous drive. While in the long run this could mean increased modularity and less centralization in the automotive industry (Ferloni, 2022), car makers are increasingly integrating battery assembly, the development of battery management systems (BMS) and electric motor manufacturing into their core competences (Alochet et al., 2022). Instead of simply relying on market exchanges, automotive firms integrate new competences by buying, participating, or developing alliances with other firms.

This paper investigates this dynamic by considering ORBIS data on ownership networks to understand if multinational companies in the production of vehicles, batteries, electric motors, and smart grid equipment are becoming increasingly connected and co-located in the same urban regions. If automakers integrate new competences by buying or developing alliances with firms in different sectors, ownership networks should mirror this increased interrelation between sectors by becoming more connected in time. Furthermore, these connections are likely to be particularly strong in some urban areas because spatial proximity is known to favor knowledge exchanges, and innovation is very concentrated geographically (Maskell and Malmberg, 1999; Balland et al., 2020). As a result, we hypothesize that multisectoral interactions are particularly concentrated in specific urban regions.

Thomas Schwab von Postel (p), Julia Bachtrögler-Unger, Pierre-Alexandre Balland, Ron Boschma

Andrea Ferloni

European regions possess different innovation potential built on specialized knowledge and varying technological foundations. These diverse innovation capabilities are crucial in developing necessary new technologies to master the ongoing green and digital transition. However, collaboration between regions is limited. To increase interregional cooperation and spur the development of green and digital technologies, complementary linkages must be identified. In this study, we provide an overview of interregional collaborations already in place and potential new collaborations between regions. We give special emphasis on collaboration opportunities between economically leading and lagging regions and between economically lagging regions. This not only provides new impetus for European regional innovation systems, but also shows how cohesion across regions can be improved at the same time.

Alan Brown, Gyonggu Shin (p), Jang-seop Byeon, Jumong Na, Ji-hye Choi

Thomas Schwab von Postel

The importance of urban inclusion in urban human rights research, policy and practice has been growing both as an academic area and in terms of its application. For the ideal of urban inclusion to be achieved, cities need to be able to understand their own current state of urban inclusion as well as barriers and progress toward urban inclusion. There is therefore a need for comprehensive tools to assess themselves with respect to urban inclusion. This paper details the development and application of an urban inclusion index, which was constructed to be applied to cities in the Asia-Pacific region. The index was developed to be used by cities to evaluate their work, and set long-term goals to guide future actions for the promotion and improvement of inclusion and anti-discrimination policies at local level, contributing to the fulfillment of the universal human rights obligations and commitments. The index is currently being applied to cities as a pilot project. The paper reflects on the development process and application of the indicators, to uncover its strengths, weaknesses, and failures. The paper uses qualitative methods, analyzing data from extensive records that were kept, in-depth interviews with the team involved in the development process and representatives of pilot cities, and expert opinions. The process of reflection is expected to provide lessons for the continued evolutionary improvement and further application of the indicators. The lessons may also be used to guide future developers of urban measurement indexes, and a template for evaluating their development process.