Characteristics of firms
engaged in collaborations
Charlene Lonmo
Science, Innovation and Electronic Information Division
Statistics Canada
Presentation at CIRANO
September 19, 2008
Overview of the Presentation
 Theory – collaboration by science-intensive
firms
 Data: Surveys of Biotechnology Use and
Development – 1999 to 2005
 Profile of innovative biotechnology firms by
selected characteristics
 Comparison of collaborators and noncollaborators
 Conclusion
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Statistics Canada • Statistique Canada
September 19, 2008
Theory: collaboration by scienceintensive firms
Science-based businesses
“… connote a commercial enterprise or collection of
enterprises that attempts to both create science and to
capture value from it. That is, the science-based
business actively participates in a process of advancing
and creating science. Moreover, a significant part of the
economic value of the enterprise is ultimately determined
by the quality of the science upon which it rests.”
Gary Pisano, Science Business
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Statistics Canada • Statistique Canada
September 19, 2008
Theory: collaboration by scienceintensive firms
“Cooperative and collaborative arrangements
involve the active participation in projects
between your company and other companies or
organizations in order to develop and/or
continue work on new or significantly improved
biotechnology processes, products and/or
services. Pure contracting-out work is not
regarded as collaboration.”
Biotechnology Use and Development Survey
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Statistics Canada • Statistique Canada
September 19, 2008
Data: Surveys of Biotechnology Use and
Development – 1999 to 2005
 Survey process
• Survey on Emerging Technologies supplemented with other sources
such as the RDCI, government agencies and business associations to
create a frame
 Population covered by estimates
• Innovative biotechnology firms – those developing biotechnologies, not
merely using them
• Biotechnology is defined in the questionnaire and this definition is
generally accepted for biotech surveys in other OECD countries
 Questions asked
• Technologies, human resources, HR challenges and strategies, firm
characteristics (age, ownership, spin-off), products, impacts of
regulations, contracting in and out, collaborations, intellectual property,
traditional financial data, special financing, tax incentives, exports,
imports and business strategies
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Statistics Canada • Statistique Canada
September 19, 2008
Profile of innovative biotechnology firms
1999
2001
2003
2005
All innovative
biotechnology firms
358
375
490
532
Collaborators
224
226
251
280
Non-collaborators
134
149
239
252
63%
60%
51%
53%
% collaborators
Source: Statistics Canada: Biotechnology Use and Development Surveys, 1999 to 2005
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Statistics Canada • Statistique Canada
September 19, 2008
Collaboration by selected characteristics:
Human health biotech sector
1999
2001
2003
2005
Human health biotech firms
150
197
262
310
Human health collaborators
110
129
143
164
% of biotech firms in the human
health sector
42%
53%
53%
58%
% of human health biotech firms
that collaborate
73%
65%
55%
53%
% collaborators in human health
49%
57%
57%
59%
Source: Statistics Canada: Biotechnology Use and Development Surveys, 1999 to 2005
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Statistics Canada • Statistique Canada
September 19, 2008
Collaboration by selected characteristics:
firm size by employment
1999
2001
2003
2005
Small biotech firms
(<50 employees)
269
266
352
397
Small collaborators
153
156
177
202
% of biotech firms that are small
75%
71%
72%
75%
% of small biotech firms that
collaborate
57%
59%
50%
51%
% biotech collaborators that are small
68%
69%
71%
72%
Source: Statistics Canada: Biotechnology Use and Development Surveys, 1999 to 2005
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Statistics Canada • Statistique Canada
September 19, 2008
Collaboration by selected
characteristics: age of biotech firm
1999
2001
2003
2005
Young firms (5 yrs or less)
..
156
240
142
Young collaborators
..
104
123
72
% of biotech firms that are young
..
42%
49%
27%
% of young biotech firms that collaborate
..
67%
51%
51%
% biotech collaborators that are young
..
46%
49%
26%
Source: Statistics Canada: Biotechnology Use and Development Surveys, 1999 to 2005
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Statistics Canada • Statistique Canada
September 19, 2008
Collaboration by selected characteristics:
biotech firms that are spin-offs
1999
2001
2003
2005
123
140
176
179
81
93
110
116
% of biotech firms that are spinoffs
34%
37%
36%
34%
% of biotech spinoffs that collaborate
66%
66%
63%
65%
% biotech collaborators that are spinoffs
36%
41%
44%
41%
Spin-off biotech firms
Spin-off biotech collaborators
Source: Statistics Canada: Biotechnology Use and Development Surveys, 1999 to 2005
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Statistics Canada • Statistique Canada
September 19, 2008
Collaboration by selected characteristics:
biotech firms with patents
1999
2001
2003
2005
Biotech firms with patents
207
249
315
333
Collaborators with patents
163
165
189
199
% of biotech with patents
58%
66%
64%
63%
% of patenting firms that collaborate
79%
66%
60%
60%
% collaborators that have patents
73%
73%
75%
71%
Source: Statistics Canada: Biotechnology Use and Development Surveys, 1999 to 2005
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Statistics Canada • Statistique Canada
September 19, 2008
Collaboration by selected characteristics:
biotech firms that obtained funding
1999
2001
2003
2005
Biotech firms with funding
138
134
178
173
Collaborators with funding
95
92
117
105
% of biotech firms with funding
26%
25%
33%
33%
% of funded firms that collaborate
69%
69%
66%
61%
% collaborators that have funding
42%
41%
47%
38%
Source: Statistics Canada: Biotechnology Use and Development Surveys, 1999 to 2005
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Statistics Canada • Statistique Canada
September 19, 2008
Collaboration by selected characteristics:
stage of development
1999
2001
2003
2005
Biotech firms with no biotech
products/processes
167
196
272
209
Collaborators without biotech products
112
112
144
126
% of biotech firms without biotech products
47%
52%
56%
39%
% of biotech firms without biotech products
that collaborate
67%
57%
53%
60%
% collaborators that have no biotech products
50%
50%
57%
45%
Source: Statistics Canada: Biotechnology Use and Development Surveys, 1999 to 2005
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Statistics Canada • Statistique Canada
September 19, 2008
Collaborating firms:
collaboration partners and purposes
1999
2001
2003
2005
Purpose of collaboration
Partners
Both
Science
only
Both
Science
only
Both
Science
only
Both
Science
only
All
collaborators
143
81
81
145
112
139
120
160
Both public
and private
91
22
38
32
43
17
56
49
Private only
37
18
37
61
59
48
35
52
Public only
15
41
6
52
10
74
29
59
Source: Statistics Canada: Biotechnology Use and Development Surveys, 1999 to 2005
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Statistics Canada • Statistique Canada
September 19, 2008
Comparison of collaborators and noncollaborators by selected key variables
Key variables:




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Biotech revenues
Biotech R&D
Biotech employment
Fund-raising
Statistics Canada • Statistique Canada
September 19, 2008
Collaborators vs. non-collaborators by
Biotech Revenues
1999
2001
2003
2005
7.9
10.4
7.2
8.8
13%
10%
12%
10%
Average biotech revenue per firm
(millions)
2.3
6.9
8.0
5.4
Biotech intensity (by revenues)
5%
26%
13%
5%
Collaborators
Average biotech revenue per firm
(millions)
Biotech intensity (by revenues)
Non-collaborators
Note: Revenues are in constant 2002 dollars
Source: Statistics Canada: Biotechnology Use and Development Surveys, 1999 to 2005
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Statistics Canada • Statistique Canada
September 19, 2008
Collaborators vs. non-collaborators by
Biotech R&D
1999
2001
2003
2005
Collaborators
Average biotech R&D per firm
(millions)
3.5
5.6
3.7
4.0
Biotech intensity (by R&D)
87%
99%
60%
71%
Average biotech R&D per firm
(millions)
0.7
2.1
2.2
1.7
Biotech intensity (by R&D)
63%
79%
74%
60%
Non-collaborators
Note: R&D expenditures are in constant 2002 dollars
Source: Statistics Canada: Biotechnology Use and Development Surveys, 1999 to 2005
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Statistics Canada • Statistique Canada
September 19, 2008
Collaborators vs. non-collaborators by
Biotech Employment
1999
2001
2003
2005
28
39
32
32
13%
18%
22%
15%
11
20
16
17
10%
24%
10%
16%
Collaborators
Average biotech employment per
firm
Biotech intensity (by employment)
Non-collaborators
Average biotech employment per
firm
Biotech intensity (by employment)
Source: Statistics Canada: Biotechnology Use and Development Surveys, 1999 to 2005
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Statistics Canada • Statistique Canada
September 19, 2008
Collaborators vs. non-collaborators by
Biotech fund-raising
1999
2001
2003
2005
2,070
710
1,226
775
21.8
7.7
10.5
7.4
216
279
414
450
5.0
6.7
6.8
6.6
Collaborators
Funds raised (millions)
Average funds raised by seekers
(millions)
Non-collaborators
Funds raised (millions)
Average funds raised by seekers
(millions)
Note: Funds are in constant 2002 dollars
Source: Statistics Canada: Biotechnology Use and Development Surveys, 1999 to 2005
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Statistics Canada • Statistique Canada
September 19, 2008
Conclusions
Trends
 The proportion of biotech collaborators is dropping
 Spin-off firms are more likely to be collaborators
 Firms with patents are more likely to be collaborators
 Firms that obtained funding are more likely to be
collaborators
 The proportion of funded firms that collaborate is
dropping, as has the average value of funds raised – the
difference between collaborators and non-collaborators
is diminishing
Value of other approaches
Linked database to enable the study of impacts
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Statistics Canada • Statistique Canada
September 19, 2008
Questions
For further information:
Chuck McNiven – Section Chief for Emerging Technologies
chuck.mcniven@statcan.ca
Charlene Lonmo – Survey manager for BUDS and the Survey on
Emerging Technologies
charlene.lonmo@statcan.ca
Beau Cinnamon – Survey manager for Bioproducts Survey and
Functional Foods and Natural Health Products Survey
beau.cinnamon@statcan.ca
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Statistics Canada • Statistique Canada
September 19, 2008