IP modularity
Subtitle: profiting from innovation by aligning product architecture with intellectual property
By: Joachim Henkel, Carliss Y. Baldwin, Willy C. Shih
Contributors: Baldwin, Carliss Y. (Carliss Young); Shih, Willy C.; Harvard Business School
Edition: Revised edition
Series: Working paper / Harvard Business School -- 13-012; Working paper (Harvard Business School) -- 13-012
Publisher: Harvard Business School
Published: 2012
Place of publication: Boston]
Language: eng
Number of pages: 23
Description: In this paper we explain how firms seeking to take advantage of distributed innovation and outsourcing can bridge the tension between value creation and value capture by modifying the modular structure of their technical systems. Specifically, we introduce the concept of "IP modularity", a special form of modularity that seeks to protect and capture value from intellectual property (IP). We define what it means for a system to be "IP-modular," and illustrate the application of this concept in a number of practical situations. From the examples, we derive a comprehensive framework that can be used to design and evaluate value capture strategies for modular systems.
Notes: "August 2012. (Revised November 2012.)" -- Publisher's website.

Includes bibliographical references (pages 21-23).