Case study of R&D efficiency in an ATP joint venture

This paper summarizes the technical accomplishments and presents selected measures of research efficiencies and early stage economic impacts of the Printed Wiring Board (PWB) Research Joint Venture Project. The project was cost-shared by the Advanced Technology Program and carried out by a group of seven companies, with participation by Sandia National Laboratories. The period considerred in this case study is from mid-1991 through mid-1996, the time during which the research was conducted. ATP’s funding of the PWB Research Joint Venture has thus far had a number of direct and indirect economic impacts. Of the direct impacts, the largest to date has been the increase in R&D efficiency. The project achieved at least a 53 percent reduction in overall research costs. The increase in research efficiency has in turn led to reduced cycle times for both new project development and new process development. Collectively, the result has meant productivity improvements for member companies and improved competitive positions in the world market.     

UNITED STATES V. MICROSOFT: DID CONSUMERS WIN?

United States v. Microsoft and the related state suit filedin 1998 appear to have concluded. In a unanimous en banc decisionissued in late June 2004, the U.S. Court of Appeals for theD.C. Circuit rejected challenges to the remedies specified ina settlement reached in late 2001 and approved by the districtcourt in November 2002. We examine the remedies imposed in theUnited States, in terms of both their relationship to the violationsfound and their impact on consumer welfare. We conclude thatthe remedies addressed the violations ultimately found by theCourt of Appeals (which were a subset of those found by theoriginal district court and an even smaller subset of the violationsalleged, both in court and in public discourse) and went beyondthem in important ways. The remedies imposed appear to havestruck a reasonable balance between protecting consumers againstthe types of actions found illegal, on the one hand, and, onthe other hand, avoiding excessive restrictions that would harmconsumers by restricting Microsoft's ability to compete in pro-competitiveways.     

The 'Best Interests of the Child' and Parental Separation: on the 'Civilizing of Parents'

The concept of the 'best interests of the child' is both pivotal in family law and yet essentially contested. This paper reflects on the concept's position within a number of longer-term histories – of the jurisprudence surrounding child custody, of the social construction of childhood, and of the emotional constitution of family life more broadly. The turn to a co-parenting model from the 1970s onwards and the rise of the concept of the 'civilized divorce' is analysed by drawing on Norbert Elias's analysis of 'processes of civilization' in Western social life. The paper argues that the post-separation co-parenting model is only partially explained as the outcome of political manoeuvring by particular social and professional groups; it should also be understood as part of longer-term trends in family life, emotional management, and the socio-legal construction of childhood, as part of the on-going 'civilizing of parents'.     

Political Participation and Civic Community of Ethnic Minorities in Four Cities in the Netherlands

In this article, the political participation of Turkish, Surinamese and Moroccan immigrants in four cities in the Netherlands is related to the civic community of these groups. The usefulness of Robert Putnam's civic community perspective is tested for the immigrant communities in Dutch cities in the Netherlands. The relationship between the networks in the migrant communities and political participation found in earlier research can partly explain the differences between the ethnic groups and between the cities, but some additional explanatory factors are suggested.     

Determining Factors of the Effectiveness of IP-based Spin-offs: Comparing the Netherlands and the US

In this paper we describe and analyse IP-based spin-offs as a relatively new phenomenon for transferring knowledge from science to industry. We argue that the effectiveness of this mechanism is subject to a complex array of institutional factors. These factors entail national, sectoral, regional and managerial institutions. Based on an indicative comparison between the Netherlands and the United States we find that is especially the combination of national and sectoral institutions that condition whether an IP-based spin-off is established in the first place, whereas regional and managerial institutions condition its subsequent chances of success. We finish by formulating some notions for public policy.     

Shaping factors of EU–East Asia relations

Six shaping factors will determine the short-to-medium term outlook for East Asia. Two of these are geo-political flashpoints, with implications beyond the region—North Korea and China–Taiwan cross-strait relations. For both of these at least some logic of a’ solution’ will need to be worked out. Intra-regional tensions between China, the fastest growing economy in the world, and Japan, the second largest economy in the world, will need accommodation and compromise. Fourthly, the relationship between the US and China remains ambivalent, veering between strategic partnership and strategic competition. Long term stability in the region will require that the US–China relationship becomes more predictable, which will only be possible if both players define their long-term interests innovatively and in different ways. Probably the most important shaping factor for the region is the domestic political economy of China. The nexus between Chinese economic growth and its domestic political stability needs to remain in tact—without economic growth no political stability, while stability is a precondition for continued growth. These five shaping factors together will determine the scope of multi-lateral problem-solving frameworks for the region. The Kuala Lumpur first East Asia Summit has shown the determination of leaders in the region to co-ordinate, share information and exchange views. However, the decision not to go beyond the current institutional set-up and to retain ASEAN’s centrality points to a continuation of the present ‘shallow’ integration for some time to come.