Are the Us Outperforming Europe in University Technology Licensing? a New Perspective on the European Paradox Are the Us Outperforming Europe in University Technology Licensing? a New Perspective on the European Paradox *

Europe is perceived to lag behind the US in converting its academic results into economic outcomes. Using new survey data and controlling for standard factors affecting the productivity of Technology Transfer Offices (TTOs), we find that European TTOs do not execute less licenses than US TTOs. However, they earn significantly less revenue from licenses. We relate the difference in licensing income to differences in the organization and staffing of TTOs. Specifically, US TTOs employ more staff with experience in industry and appear to have greater flexibility in managing their budget. ∗We thank seminar participants at the CEMI research day for interaction and comments. We are indebted to Dominique Foray, Francesco Lissoni and especially Jerry Thursby for insightful discussions and advice. Fatou Coulibaly, Tatiana Benavides and Ilka Terrahe provided outstanding research assistance. †Chaire en Economie et Management de l’Innovation, Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne, 1015 Lausanne, Switzerland, [email protected]. ‡Chaire en Economie et Management de l’Innovation, Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne, 1015 Lausanne, Switzerland, [email protected]. §Department of Economics, University of Geneva.