Abstract
In this report, we are outlining the cooperative relationships between small- and medium-sized enterprises and universities in the Okayama area. Furthermore, several types of industry-academy cooperative initiatives are introduced and classified into various categories. In one group, different types of industry-academy cooperative research are described, including 1) the utilization of resources in the region, 2) commercial market development that makes use of regional R&D support foundations and 3) industry-academy-finance cooperation models. In a second group, there exists 4) municipal support for market development, 5) new product development through the use of the regional Technology Licensing Office and 6) corporate brand value enhancement as a result of prizes won in the academic community. From these different categories, we can clearly see that both the potential for new information and the development of markets are important factors in the cooperative research that takes place between small- and medium-sized enterprises and universities in the region.
