Title: Effectiveness of Japan's government sponsored research project - the case of a Real World Computing Program

Authors: Yoshiaki Nakamura, Chiyoda-ku

Addresses: Research Institute of Economy, Trade and Industry, 1-3-1 Kasumigaseki, Tokyo 100-8901, Japan. Research Institute of Economy, Trade and Industry, 1-3-1 Kasumigaseki, Tokyo 100-8901, Japan

Abstract: This paper investigates the advantages and disadvantages of a government sponsored research project, taking the Real World Computing (RWC) Program as an example. After discussing the organisation, budget, and research themes, I evaluate the contribution of the RWC Program compared with the Fifth Generation Computer Systems (FGCS) Project. The major findings of this paper are as follows: 1 The contribution of the program has been substantial compared with that of the FGCS Project in terms of the number of paper citations in the first six years. 2 Through participation in the program, the resulting R&D has had a spillover effect on the other research within the company, seemingly resulting in an increase in the number of patents taken out by the participating companies. Though the contribution of the program may have been substantial in the first six years, if MITI will further improve the structure for promoting the program to activate collaborative R&D, the contribution will be much bigger than before.

Keywords: research consortium; Real World Computing Program; science and technology policy.

DOI: 10.1504/IJEIM.2002.000477

International Journal of Entrepreneurship and Innovation Management, 2002 Vol.2 No.1, pp.100-116

Published online: 16 Jul 2003 *

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