Oxfordshire biomedical university spin-offs: an evolving system

Abstract

The creation of university spin-offs and the development of its biotechnology industry are two of the UK's and many other countries' top research-to-commercialisation priorities. Usually more is known about the numbers of spin-offs than their performance. This paper analyses the performance of 56 biomedical spin-offs from Oxfordshire's universities and public sector research laboratories with respect to human resources, the degree of innovative capability and internationalisation. In so doing, it explores the contribution of this group of firms to the evolution of science-based industry in this particular location which is one of the UK's leading centres of research and innovation.