Key Characteristics in the Choice of International Technology Transfer Mode

The choice between licensing and direct investment as a vehicle for international technology transfer is hypothesized to be related to characteristics of the individual technology, parent corporation, and the host country involved in the transfer. A set of hypotheses regarding these relationships are developed and tested in a logit statistical model for a sample of 1,226 technology transfers. We find that hypotheses regarding the effects of technology and parents characteristics are strongly supported by this analysis; hypotheses regarding the effect of host country characteristics on transfer patterns receive mixed support.