2013 Volume 43 Issue 1 Pages 7-23
The development of university spin-off firms is one of the many ways that universities can contribute to regional economic development. In response to the expectation that university spin-off companies will lead to increased economic development outcomes, universities, and government organizations that support or provide oversight to universities, have taken steps to encourage university spinoff activities. This paper shows the response of universities in the state of Ohio, and in particular, one university, The University of Toledo, in developing spin-off companies in response to both institutional and state promotional efforts to do so. The paper reports on spin-off activity in Ohio over the 2000-2009 period and compares these data to overall research funding at the universities and success in winning State of Ohio grants to support technology-based business expansion. The paper also shows steps taken at The University of Toledo, a mid-sized university in a lagging industrial city, in promoting spin-off activity. While showing that The University of Toledo and other state universities have increased their number of spinoff companies over the period of investigation, the paper cautions that more data is needed to evaluate the overall contribution of spin-off companies to regional economic development and whether developing business ventures is the optimal use of a faculty members time to generate regional economic development returns.
JEL Classification: I23, I25, O31, O32
