This article examines some of the distinctive characteristics of South Korean firms in relation to their research and development (R&D) and export activities affecting the efforts to retain intellectual property rights (IPR). In particular, this study shows how firms of different sizes (small and medium enterprises: SMEs vs. large-scale enterprises: LEs) tend to hold the ownership of IPR differently. To test the heterogeneous effects of the firms’ innovative capacity, this study utilizes the firm level data of 6,138 Korean firms during 2006–2014. In the years 2006–2014, South Korea concluded free trade agreements (FTAs) with numerous economies and accelerated its market competition and integration into the global economy. Our empirical results found that R&D activities of both SMEs and LEs were active during the period; however, SMEs in particular took a great stride in their patenting and innovation activities. Findings of our article also show that the more companies engaged in export activities, the more actively patents grew. Furthermore, the companies in the information and communications technology (ICT) industry are more aggressive in patenting activities.

中文翻译：

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韩国企业的创新与出口：它们在规模和行业上有何不同？

本文研究了韩国企业在研发（R＆D）和出口活动方面的一些显着特征，这些活动影响了知识产权保护（IPR）的工作。特别是，这项研究表明，不同规模的公司（中小型企业：中小型企业与大型企业：LE）如何倾向于以不同的方式持有知识产权所有权。为了检验企业创新能力的异质性影响，本研究利用了2006-2014年间6,138家韩国企业的企业水平数据。在2006-2014年间，韩国与众多经济体缔结了自由贸易协定（FTA），并加速了其市场竞争和融入全球经济。我们的实证结果表明，在此期间，中小企业和LE的研发活动都很活跃。然而，中小企业尤其在专利和创新活动方面取得了长足的进步。我们文章的调查结果还表明，从事出口活动的公司越多，专利增长就越积极。此外，信息和通信技术（ICT）行业中的公司在专利活动中更加积极。