The Internationalization of Corporate R&D

THE INTERNATIONALIZATION OF CORPORATE R&DOther suggested measures include establishing individual competence accounts tosupport re-training and life-long learning (Edling 2005), and improving uppersecondary-schoolvocational training in the industrial field (IVA 2005).Infrastructure and Regulations to Support Innovative Activities (A3)A national science and technology base must be supported by a well-developedinfrastructure and communications, innovation-friendly regulations, favorable economicpolicies and a stable macroeconomic environment in general. Policymakersare looking at trade and competition policies, protection of intellectual property,tax policies (including the lowering of corporate taxes), and regulatory regimes inspecific industry sectors. For example, deregulation in the information and communicationtechnologies sector has fundamentally changed the conditions for innovationin many countries.The challenge for governments is to create conditions that support the capability toparticipate in the international division of labor and specialization, as well as thebuild up of domestic environments attractive to internationally mobile productionfactors, such as venture capital and specialized knowledge workers. Specific policymeasures for this are described below. Specialized policy areas, such as cybersecurityand consumer protection, must be addressed when dealing with internationalflows of sensitive data (see GAO 2005).Sweden, together with the other Nordic countries, has a stable microeconomicenvironment that is characterized by openness and transparency. The corporate taxlevel is low compared to many other E.U. countries, and rules and restrictions affectinginward investment have been liberalized over the recent period. The marketsfor telecommunications and energy have also been re-regulated in the early1990s (NIFU 2005).Weaknesses can be identified in specific countries. The U.S., for example, facespotential disadvantage in the telecommunication infrastructure (regarding qualityand coverage of wireless networks and broadband connectivity) and the challengeof rising health care costs (Farrell & Rosenfeld 2005). In Sweden, the lack of flexibilityin the labor market (Svenskt Näringsliv 2005) and the need to improve thebusiness and investment environment (ISA 2005) have been pointed out.1.2.2 Foster Attractive Conditions Based on Knowledge,Production and Markets (B)Multinational companies are searching for countries with (B1) excellent R&D conditions,including highly skilled persons, (B2) highly developed production structuresand (B3) attractive growing and leading markets. These conditions or environments40