Management of Technology and Innovation in Japan

From Practice: IP Management in Japanese Companies 359
on one component technology in detail, the source of innovation comes from skills
for anticipating the needs of a changing market, and quickly designing, producing,
and distributing the product.
From the standpoint of IP management, the IP management that the company
should have is the user-interface and/or user-application type. For example, it is
the ability to design the connecting function between devices which are procured
from multiple suppliers. These are the “technologies” that can efficiently use technology
or IP originating at other companies. In this case, the definition of innovation
platform is the ability to quickly supply the product based on product planning
skills that can anticipate the market needs, a wide range of component
technologies, and IP integration skill.
In fact, many Japanese companies are taking the approach of creating new
products and services by introducing technology from other companies based on
this kind of innovation platform. For example, not just electronics product makers,
but also home appliance, automobile, transportation equipment, construction machinery,
and other industrial equipment manufacturers are all adopting this innovation
platform model. Therefore, many Japanese manufacturers need to recognize
the transition to the next generation of technology management, whether they
are conscious of it or not.
If we want to perform this kind of next generation technology management, and
are to define our own innovation platforms and expand the business, we have to
understand the new role of IP. In other words, we have to combine and exchange
not just our own IP, but also that of other companies. By jointly using and sharing
IP we can create new value.
Up until the third generation, the core concept was to patent inventions which
come along with technology development. However, in the next generation technology
management, it will be important to have the ability to objectively analyze
and understand the patents of one’s own and other companies. This is due to the
need to secure a degree of freedom for the business, improve the company’s monopoly,
and increase the efficiency of the company’s product development
through the active incorporation of IP from other companies. It is also necessary to
promote superior cross-licensing, and create profit derived from using exclusive
rights towards other companies.
In other words, in the next generation technology management, we will need to
define relations with outside organizations, namely joint development partners and
competitors, from the perspective of IP, and make management decisions relating
to business and technology. Therefore, the systematic approaches needed to contribute
to this will also have to be reconstructed. In this way, the IP management
environment will change considerably, and as mentioned above, there are many
issues facing the leaders of IP departments at Japanese companies.