Template-type: ReDIF-Paper 1.0
Author-Name: Mani, Sunil
Author-Email: mani@intech.unu.edu
Author-Workplace-Name: United Nations University, Institute for New Technologies
Title: Deregulation, Entry of MNCs, Public Technology Procurement and Innovation Capability
	 in India's Telecommunications Equipment Industry
Abstract: India has a sizeable telecom equipment manufacturing industry. The industry, which
	 was originally dominated by just one state-owned corporation, has now been
	 deregulated. Currently the industry consist of twelve SMEs, which manufacture small
	 and medium switches and seven large firms (of which five are TNCs) manufacturing
	 large switches). The country has a history of extreme dependence on foreign
	 technology imports through essentially the licensing route to manufacture large
	 switching equipment. These imported technologies were shown to be inappropriate to
	 the usage pattern prevailing in the country. Consequent to this, considerable
	 investments were effected through in-house R&D to adapt this inappropriate
	 technology to local usage conditions. However some systematic efforts towards
	 building up of local innovation capability through 'green field R&D projects' were
	 initiated only around the mid-1980s. The paper defines innovation capability in
	 telecoms equipment in terms of the ability to conceptualise, design, and
	 manufacture state-of-the-art tecommunications equipment coupled with the ability to
	 keep pace with important technological changes. This definition of innovation
	 capability is operationalised in terms of an index of R&D. By taking three cases of	
	 telecoms technologies namely (a) main automatic local exchanges; (b) a Wireless in
	 Local Loop access technology; and (c) telecom software exports, it is demonstrated
	 that the country has a growing innovation capability in this sector. A survey of
	 the various contributory factors identifies public procurement as the main
	 instrument that has stimulated this activity. But with the opening of the telecoms
	 carrier industry to private sector providers, this may become less of an effective
	 instrument in the years to come 
Keywords: Innovation Policy, Technology Transfer, Telecommunications Industry, R&D, India 
Series: Discussion Paper
Creation-Date: 2003
Number: 1
File-URL: http://www.intech.unu.edu/publications/discussion-papers/2003-1.pdf
File-Format: application/pdf
File-Size: 240 Kb
Handle: RePEc:unm:unuint:200301