The World Economic Forum 2008: The Coming of Age of Open and Collaborative Innovation?

The principal theme of the World Economic Forum (WEF) Annual Meeting 2008 in Davos is the “The Power of Collaborative Innovation”. This main theme will be tackled by discussing a range of issues under five pillars, namely, business (competing while collaborating); economic and finance (addressing economic insecurity); geopolitics (aligning interests across divides); science and technology (exploring nature’s new frontiers); and values and society (understanding future shifts). WEF argues that the power of collaborative innovation will be an important force in shaping how the global community addresses complexity, competing interests and scarce resources which remain the greatest obstacles to progress on the global agenda. The paradox, WEF suggests, is that in our networked world, where knowledge is ubiquitous and change is rapid, there is no common vision and agenda to ensure that the status quo is not maintained with respect to major global challenges. The expected outcome is that WEF will be able to leverage its multistakeholder model to build platforms for like-minded communities to initiate necessary change.

Looking at who is going to be at Davos, one cannot help but be tempted to declare that the age of open and collaborative innovation, hitherto a subject championed mainly by civil society and academic movements, such as the access to knowledge (A2K) movement, is finally here. The recognition by the WEF of the power of collaborative innovation is no doubt, an important development. However, the question remains whether the discussions in Davos herald the coming of age of the idea of collaborative and open innovation as the dominant theory in innovation policy thinking.

Will the discussions in Davos lead to an important shift in the mainstream thinking about the power of collaborative in innovation? Will there be a new understanding of the wealth of networks, as Yochai Benkler puts it? What about openness? There are a number of important factors that will determine the future on this issue. A lot will depend how the challenges of knowledge governance and innovation in the 21^st Century are understood; whether there is an appreciation that change has infact began but that the emerging shifts still lack sufficient global political and business support; and whether the necessary change also includes focusing on the needs of people, especially the poor, and promoting broader access to innovations. Finally, meaningful change will also depend on whether connection between collaborative innovation and openness will have to be explored.

Understanding the Challenges of Knowledge Governance and Innovation in the 21^st Century

Knowledge is today a central determinant of everything from business success to national competitiveness through to solving the world’s most pressing problems, such as tackling the burden of disease in developing countries. The ability to leverage the power of knowledge has increased exponentially in the last decade or so thanks to the power of the internet and global trade integration. However, with more knowledge and powerful tools to distribute, share and exchange knowledge, why is the global community failing to make a dent in the world’s most pressing problems?

The answer partly lies in the fact that the global community has failed to face up to the challenge of governing knowledge democratically and fairly and harnessing the power of innovation in a new age. To address the challenge, there is need to focus on the systems that shape the production, appropriation, trade and access to knowledge goods and services (innovations). There are many factors that shape the outcomes in production, appropriation, trade and access. However, a critical factor on which the global community needs to start to develop a common vision is the systems of intellectual property protection and rights. As the importance of knowledge has grown in industry and in determining global competitiveness, the ownership of knowledge has become an important economic, political and social issue. As systems of appropriation and allocation of rights over knowledge, the various categories of intellectual property ranging from patents, to copyright and related rights through to trademarks have a major impact on production, including determining whether and how collaborative innovation can take place, as well as distribution and access to knowledge.

Change is Underway; but Mindsets Still need to Shift

Some progress has been made in addressing the challenges posed by intellectual property in providing incentives for innovation while permitting broader dissemination and access to knowledge. However, much remains to be done. Recent years have seen a variety of initiatives in both the private and public sector ranging from the free and open source software (FLOSS) movement to initiatives to support open access to scientific and other research publications to the adoption of the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) Development Agenda; a reform platform that addresses, among other things, open and collaborative models of innovation and access to knowledge. There is also the World Health Organization (WHO) initiative to develop a global public health, innovation and intellectual property strategy and plan of action for providing incentives and funding for essential health research and development into diseases that predominantly affect developing countries.

We have also seen key civil society, academic as well as government process and meetings such as on the future of WIPO, on access to knowledge and on internet governance which seek to address various aspects around open collaborative models of innovation. In addition, there is a growing body of literature addressing some of the key issues. Some of the most recent reports are: the European Patent Office (EPO) Scenarios for the Future of Intellectual Property Report (2007); the Economist Newspapers’ Special Report on 11^th October 2007 on Open Innovation; and the World Bank’s Global Economic Prospects 2008 which focuses on technological diffusion in developing countries.

To initiate and/or support the necessary changes, those gathered in Davos will have to understand that to unleash the power of collaborative innovation, the global community will have to focus on the rules that govern the production, appropriation, trade in and access to knowledge. Account will have to be taken of the shifts and changes that have already begun and of the players driving those changes. Among other things, intellectual property issues will have to be tackled head on. The business, government, media, academic and civil society leaders gathered will therefore have to be prepared to think different.

Not Forgetting Peoples Needs and Access to Innovations

The changes that are initiated as a result of the Davos discussions must be those which will unleash the power of collaborative innovation to address the most pressing needs, particularly in developing countries. For this to happen, both the needs of innovation and access to innovations will have to be addressed in a single framework. Balancing innovation and access is as important for the ordinary people as it is for business competitors and for the technology and science community.

Climate change will no doubt provide a lightning rod for the push for collaborative innovation. However, it should be remembered that there are other pressing needs requiring solutions where collaborative innovation will be equally, if not more, important. For example, serious attempts such as those at WHO to develop a strategy and plan of action for public health, innovation and intellectual property where collaborative innovation models can play an important role will require on-going commitment by governments, civil society, business and academia.

And Remember Openness

The full power of collaborative innovation will only be unleashed when the question of openness; as in open innovation, is also addressed. The powerful idea of open innovation needs to be part of the conversation. Incentive and appropriation systems that can work in an open innovation environment need to be thought through and supported. People in Davos need to think: open collaborative innovation not just collaborative innovation.