Economics

The performance of university spin-offs: An exploratory analysis using venture capital data

Document Type

Article

Abstract

University spin-offs are defined as firms founded by university employees. Using a large database on venture-backed start-up companies, I describe the characteristics of university spin-offs and investigate whether they perform differently than other firms. I find that venture-backed university spin-offs are concentrated in the biotechnology and information technology industries. Moreover, a spin-off tends to stay close to the university, suggesting that technology transfer through spin-offs is largely a local phenomenon. Multivariate regression analyses show that university spin-offs have a higher survival rate but are not significantly different from other start-ups in terms of the amount of venture capital raised, the probability of completing an initial public offering (IPO), the probability of making a profit, or the size of employment. © Springer Science+Business Media, LLC 2008.

Publication Title

Journal of Technology Transfer

Publication Date

2009

Volume

34

Issue

3

First Page

255

Last Page

285

ISSN

0892-9912

DOI

10.1007/s10961-008-9088-9

Keywords

academic entrepreneur, entrepreneurship, technology transfer, university spin-off, venture capital

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