User innovation and the market
Fred Gault
#2011-009
This paper proposes a way of including in official statistics consumers
as user innovators who modify or develop products for their own use. The
issue addressed is the role of the market in the definition of
innovation in the OECD/Eurostat Oslo Manual and the exclusion by the
definition of consumers who modify or develop products and then freely
reveal the knowledge gained to others. A modest proposal is made for a
change to the definition which also has implications for the measurement
of innovation in the public sector. The policy implications of user
innovation by consumers and by firms are considered along with the
importance of including consumer user innovation in official statistics.
The paper ends with a programme for future work.
JEL Codes: H00, O33
Key words: User innovation, consumer innovation, public sector
innovation, official statistics