The 2018 IP Australia report (Chapter 6) reviews two separate studies that show “public funding of research has a positive and statistically significant impact on patent production, with the impact being stronger for collaborative grants.”
This is an important finding because – as the IP Australia report notes — patenting activity is an indicator of the commercialisation potential of research output. And research is one of the most important forms of innovative activity. The OECD estimates that around 50% of long-term economic growth in its member countries can be attributed to innovation.
So, more public funding = more research = more patents filed = greater commercialisation potential = more overall innovation = more economic growth. And the results are even more impressive when collaborative grants are considered.
These studies reinforce the need to implement the recommendations of the Industry and Science Australia 2030 Plan to drive more research and collaboration, including increasing support for direct grant programs.