Technology Transfer and the British Microelectronics Industry, 1950-75: Confused Signals
Professor John F WILSON
Director
University of Nottingham International Business History Institute,
Nottingham University Business School,
Nottingham, UK.
j.wilson@nottingham.ac.uk
Abstract:
By the 1990s, the global microelectronics industry was composed of a myriad range of syndicates, alliances, partnerships, exchange agreements (technical and market-related) and joint ventures. It was an industry in which technological interdependence had become established practice, with the flow of ideas and knowledge becoming multi-directional, taking in the USA, Western Europe and Japan. At the same time, it is noticeable that British-owned firms had been marginalized in this system, having been eclipsed by the much more powerful American and Japanese multinationals that came to dominate microelectronics. Focusing on the British technological and commercial leader, Ferranti, this paper will assess the extent to which American technology was purchased and the impact this had on the industry's performance. It will become clear that in spite of a considerable outlay on licences British firms bebefitted only marginally from access to the world's best technology. One of the reasons behind this was the direction of government policy in this field, given its empahsis on technology leadership, rather than followership. Follwoing the work of Porter and of von Tunzelman, this paper is concerned with how business and technology trnasfer can be best fitted to the values and resources of firms.
Key Words: microelectronics, Ferranti, technology transfer, government policy
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