Real Contents and Channels of Open Innovation

This chapter explores the contents and channels of open innovation (OI) in small and medium enterprises (SMEs) that operate in emerging or growing technological industries in South Korea. Through case studies, this chapter presents concrete contents and channels of open innovation of SMEs. Many studies already have shown the channels and contents of big businesses or multinational companies (MNCs) (Chesbrough, Open innovation: the new imperative for creating and profiting from technology. Harvard University Press, Cambridge, MA. pp. 1–19, 43, 61, 93–112, 113–133; Open innovation: a new paradigm for understanding industrial innovation. In: Chesbrough H, Vanhaverbeke W, West J (eds) Open innovation: researching a new paradigm. Oxford University Press, Oxford, pp. 3–11, 2006a; Open business models: how to thrive in the new innovation landscape. Harvard Business School Press, Boston. pp. 15, 20, 196–203, 2006b). In this chapter, we see concrete contents of open innovation and channels for it in SMEs. Readers will thereupon have an opportunity to conceive their own open innovation contents and channels in their own SMEs. In addition, we see the reality of closed innovation of SMEs. Even though we look at Korean cases of SMEs’ open innovation, the target industries are high-tech industries such as the fuel cell industry, intelligent robots, solar energy, and medical instrument industry, all of which will be future industries for both developed and developing countries.