중소기업의 특허에 대한 외국인 투자자 반응: 의료용 물질 및 의약품제조업(C21)을 중심으로 = Foreign Investor Response to Patents of Small and Medium-sized Enterprises: Focusing on Manufacture of Pharmaceuticals, Medicinal Chemical and Botanical Products (C21)

다국어 초록 (Multilingual Abstract)

Interest in attracting foreign investment is increasing to facilitate the smooth financing of small and medium-sized enterprises. However, due to information asymmetry issues regarding domestic SMEs, foreign investors have difficulty recognizing the existence of SMEs or tend to perceive them as high-risk investment targets due to insufficient information. However, if SMEs possess excellent star patents, their recognition will be enhanced, information asymmetry problems will be alleviated, and they may be preferred by foreign investors because they expect future potential profits through the exclusive rights of the patent. Based on this perspective, this study empirically analyzed the responses of foreign investors to patents held by SMEs engaged in Manufacture of pharmaceuticals, medicinal chemical and botanical products(C21). The variables representing the characteristics of patents were the number of patents, the number of claims meaning the range of the legal rights of the patent, and the frequency of citations reflecting the technical and economic value as independent variables. In particular, in order to analyze the qualitative characteristics of star patents held by companies, the maximum number of claims and the maximum citation frequency were set as variables for each company. The analysis results showed that the higher the maximum number of claims and the maximum citation frequency of patents held by SMEs, the higher the foreign investment ratio significantly. This suggests that foreign investors tend to prefer investing in SMEs with excellent star patents, as awareness of them increases, information asymmetry problems are reduced through patent information, and growth expectations through patents increase. This study is the first to analyze the reactions of foreign investors to SMEs holding star patents, suggesting that SMEs holding excellent patents can contribute to foreign capital procurement.