IPR bad for Women

Women make up growing share of U.S. entrepreneurs, with much of that growth driven by women of color (American Express Open 2017). Women are far less likely than men, however, to hold patents (Milli et al. 2016), which has important implications for their business success, particularly for those in STEM industries, where patents are more common. Similarly, Bell et al. (2016) show that children from minority racial and ethnic groups, apart from Asian children, are much less likely to grow up to be inventors: White children are three times as likely as Black children, and eight times as likely as Hispanic children, to become inventors as adults.

Previous research has found that intellectual property rights, including patents, can play an important role in business success. Many lenders consider patent ownership, or at least having a patent application filed, an important factor in making their funding decisions: patent holders are more likely to receive private equity financing from venture capitalists and typically receive funding more quickly than entrepreneurs who do not hold patents (Häussler, Harhoff, and Mueller 2012; Graham et al. 2009). Patents have also been linked to greater market value among established businesses (Hall, Jaffe, and Trajtenberg 2005). Higher rates of patenting or other intellectual property holdings among women business owners could improve their access to financing and help them achieve their growth aspirations and maximize revenues.

Progress toward gender and racial/ethnic equity in innovation would also benefit society. Diverse contributions are essential to identifying and developing solutions to the pressing problems confronting individual communities and the world more broadly. An array of unique standpoints offer invaluable perspectives for innovation. By integrating more women and people of color into the innovation ecosystem, we will benefit from the contributions of more talented inventors and the ideas, products, and solutions they can develop if provided the opportunity.

Until recently, data on the intellectual property (IP) holdings and other research and development (R&D) activities among entrepreneurs were limited. New data from the Annual Survey of Entrepreneurs, a new survey on employer firms gathered by the Census Bureau, however, provide an unprecedented opportunity to examine a broad array of IP holdings, patenting activity, and R&D activities among entrepreneurs by gender, and by race and ethnicity. This report documents participation in these activities among women- and men-owned employer firms and explores how these activities relate to business outcomes, such as funding, revenue, and survival.[1] The report also uses data from the 1997-2010 waves of the Survey of Business Owners to discuss women’s representation as entrepreneurs over time.