Journal of Science and Technology Policy in China

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to review key academic literature on the characteristics of business firms' intellectual property (IP) strategy and to examine the implications for how Chinese firms can deal with today's business environment under the globalization.

Design/methodology/approach – A selection of peer-reviewed articles from scholarly journals listed in major academic search engines is reviewed. The search results showed that ProQuest included 509 related articles and ScienceDirect included 121. The abstract of all the articles were reviewed. Finally, 26 articles were identified and comprehensively reviewed. The key characteristics of the role of internal and external contexts for IP strategy development were then analysed in terms of the challenges faced by Chinese firms.

Findings – The results show that IP strategies involve IP identification/generation, valuation, utilization and enforcement. Its effectiveness depends on both internal (i.e. company size, ownership of firms, business strategies and the value of the IP) and external factors (i.e. industry structure, level of competition, and novelty of technology). Given that many Chinese firms are developing new innovative capabilities and need to protect their IP in domestic or international markets, there is a need for these firms to align their emerging IP strategy with future business strategies.

Research limitations/implications – The study focuses on the IP strategies and management in business organizations, and therefore excludes the articles from law and economics literature.

Originality/value – The paper suggests a conceptual framework and provides managerial implications on IP management at firm level, particularly relevant for Chinese business firms.