Technology Importation, Corporate Strategies, and the Rise of the Japanese Semiconductor Industry in the 1950s
During the 1950s, the Japanese semicon - ductor industry rose from nothing to a level that was roughly on par with that of the United States. It is undeniable that this was due in large part to the importation of advanced technology from lead - ing U.S. firms. In the process of technology transfer from the Unit- ed States to Japan, previous scholars have emphasized the impor - tance of the role played by the highly restrictive government tech - nology-importation policy during this period. The aim of this arti - cle is to analyze this story from the perspective of Japanese com - panies, which exhibited divergent strategies for acquiring foreign technology. These strategies were shaped by complex calculations that took into account firms' organizational capability and U.S. li- censing practices and antitrust policy, as well as the technology- importation policy of MITI (Japanese Ministry of International Trade and Industry). In short, this article argues that Japanese firms were not passive receptors, but active agents in shaping the pattern of technology importation.
Risk and Mobility: A Case Study of the Thin-Film Transistor Liquid-Crystal Display Industry in East Asia
As East Asian capitalism undergoes a series of changes, scholars have begun to study the effects of globalization on the development and decline of East Asian local industry and society. This article is a comparative analysis of the changing trajectories of the Taiwanese and Japanese thin-film transistor liquid-crystal display industries. It explores how Taiwan introduced, through collaboration, tacit knowledge from Japan, then conveyed that knowledge to mainland China, and closes with a discussion of the risks of tacit knowledge accumulation and cross-border talent mobility. Drawing on in-depth interviews and secondary-source analysis, the author shows that tacit knowledge and expertise are offshoots of the long-term accumulation of experience and technical knowledge that cannot be presented in manuals; they spread through the flow of technical personnel. Intellectual property rights cannot protect tacit knowledge. It is extremely difficult to keep it from traveling to other countries, which poses a risk for the development of Taiwanese high-tech industries. These findings help explain the surprising ways in which global technology flows affect employment in local high-tech industries.
Key Considerations for an Economic and Legal Framework Facilitating Medical Travel
Medical travel has the capacity to counter increasing costs of health care by creating new markets and increased revenue for health services, potentially benefiting local populations, economies, and health-care systems. This paper is part of a broad, comprehensive project aimed at developing a global health access policy (GHAP). It presents key issues to consider in terms of ensuring economic viability, sustainability, and limiting risk to the many stakeholders involved in the rapidly expanding industry of medical travel. The noted economic and legal barriers to medical travel are based on a synthesis of themes found in an extensive review of the available literature. Economic considerations, when setting up a GHAP, include a dynamic approach to pricing that is fair to the local population. Legal considerations include the implementation of international quality standards and the protection of the rights of those traveling as well as those of local populations in recipient countries. By taking into account these opportunities, the GHAP will more adequately address existing gaps in the economic and legal regulation of medical travel.