EFFECTS OF INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY MANAGEMENT ON PERFORMANCE OF SELECTED MANUFACTURING FIRMS IN SOUTH EAST NIGERIA

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ABSTRACT

The work is centered on the effect of IP management  on Performance  of  selected Manufacturing  Firms  in South  East  Nigeria.  The objectives  of the  study are;  To determine the extent to which protection of intellectual property through trade mark affects  the  market  share  in  manufacturing  firms  in  the  south  east  Nigeria;  To ascertain the degree to which patents induce creativity in manufacturing firms in the same zone; To establish the level to which intellectual property protection fulfills its mission in manufacturing firms; To analyze the various risks involved in intellectual property registration to see if they are higher than expected benefits; To find out the extent to which corporate  managers are involved in the management of intellectual property portfolio in their firms and the implications of their involvement especially in the south east Nigeria. The location of the study is the South East Nigeria comprising of Abia, Anambra, Ebonyi, Enugu and Imo states. Seven selected firms were used for the  study and they consist of a population of 2258 employees.  Exuastive sampling technique was applied to the managerial cadre of the population.  Out of the  total population, the managerial staff is made up of 644 employees out of whom 604 were qualified to be used for the empirical study. The companies are; Pittasson Industries Ltd.,  Alo  Aluminium  Manufacturing  Industry  Nig  ltd,  Hardis and  Dromedas  Ltd, General Cotton Mill Ltd, Ofali Rural Industries Ltd, and Jacobs Wine Nigeria Ltd. Primary data were collected through questionnaire structured in 5 point Likert scale and were complemented  with  oral  interview. Again, secondary data were collected through findings from available literature from works of other authors. Analysis of the data  was done  using statistical  tools of Chi Sq, Pearson  Product  Correlation Coefficient and Z test used to compare the sample and population mean. Other tools like frequency tables, percentages and statistical package for social science research (SPSS) were also adopted. Hypotheses 1 and 5 are to be tested with Friedman  Chi square. This tool is commonly used to compare observed  data and  expected  data. Hypothesis   2   and   3   are   to   be   tested   with   Pearson   Product   Correlation CoefficientHypothesis 4 will be tested with the z-test. The z-test tool compares sample and population  means to determine  if there is a  significant difference between the

variables.This  is  seen  in  the  statistical  significance  of  (X2c  =19.016,  p,<  .05).

Secondly,  patents  rights  induce  creativity  in  manufacturing   firms,  (r  =.   955,

P<.05).Intellectual  property  fulfills its mission  in manufacturing  firms r = .728  > r= .195 Thus (r =.728, P<.05) It was also discovered that management of intellectual property is usually done by legal practitioners, (xc2 = 213.932>xt2  =26.30).   Also discovered is the fact that, when intellectual property rights are used together with other forms  of protection,  it yields maximum benefit.  Lastly,  the benefits  that are accruable by the use of intellectual property are higher than the risks involved in IP registration, (Zc =11.517>Zt = 1.96). The study then concludes that contrary to the seemingly believe that protection of IP through the use of IPR does not contribute to an  organizations  success,  it  does  actually  positively  impact  on  the organizations performance to a significant level. The recommendation therefore is that firms should in addition to other strategies, recognize their intellectual properties, and adopt the use  of  IP  rights  to  protect  them.  Another  recommendation  is  that  IP  should  be managed  strategically by the right personnel which from the findings of the author are the corporate managers.

CHAPTER ONE INTRODUCTION

1.1       Background of the Study

Since   the   beginning   of   20th    century,   the   world   has   witnessed   astronomical advancement in scientific and technological innovation which has changed the face of modern  society.  Innovation  has  become  the  key driver  of  economic  growth  and development in both medium term and long term. Kubis(2011) defines innovation as the process of introducing new products, and services, and production process into the marketplace and creating new profitable  enterprises and higher paying jobs on this basis.  The popular  documentary  on  “Cable  Network  News”  of Make,  Create  and Innovate” is one of the indications of the importance of innovation in today’s world. Even the most read book in the  world; the holy Bible establishes it in King James Translation of Revelation, 21: 5; “Behold, I make all things new”. Innovation is thus about  having  new  ways  of  doing  things  which  usually  will  emanate  from  ideas generated by individuals and groups of individuals in their various works of life and even in their everyday life. When these ideas are put into use or into tangible items for use  in creation of wealth and other economic value, they become Properties of Intellect.They are thus called Intellectual Property (IP).

The term  Intellectual  Propertycame  to lime light in the 19th  century.  By late  20th century, it became a common place in US literature. Nevertheless, Grant(2010)notes that, the usage of the term goes back as far as 1893, at the founding of Swiss federal office  for  intellectual  property.  The  Paris  convention  for  protection  of  industrial property (1883) and Berne convention for protecting of library and artistic work (1886) both were separate administrative offices that merged in 1893 and adopted the term intellectual property in their new title (Ige, 2000). Prior to that adoption, towards the

end of the 19th  century, inventive new ways of manufacturing  helped trigger  large

scale  industrialization  accompanied   by  such  phenomena   as  rapid  city  growth, expansion of railway network, investments of capital and growing trade transaction. Idris(2012) states that the invention of movable typing and printing press by Johamas Gutenberg around 1440 contributed to the birth of the first copyright system in the world. Sople, (2010) explains that Trademarks are  believed to date back to at least

3500  years when potters’ marks were used to identify the source of earthen  pots.

However,  jurisdiction  and statutes for the protection  of trademarks  appear to  date back to only 350 years, i.e. seventeenth century in England.

Right from the medieval to several years over, intellectual property started developing. In Roman times, it was common for pottery to be embossed or impressed with a mark, for example a representation  of a dolphin or the maker’s  initial. Merchant’s marks were used in commerce in Britain from the thirteenth century. William Caxton used the mark W74C, in his Gold and Silver articles and these were hallmark as early as the fourteenth century. By the end of the sixteenth century it was very common for shopkeepers to erect signs illustrating their trade (Nwokocha, 2012). Traders took to using cards bearing their name and address, often accompanied by a device of some sort, an early form of what we have today as business card. The industrial revolution saw an enormous  growth  in the use of names  and  marks  in advertising  and thus modern  trade  mark was  born.  This  marked  the early development  of the modern Trademark Law.

In the area of patent, the first recorded patent for an industrial invention was granted in 1421 in Firenze, Italy to Architect and Engineer Filippo Brunelleschi.  The claim was that he had thought of a better method for transporting goods on the River Aron. He  undertook  with  the  Florentine  authorities  that  to  divulge  details  of  his  new invention  he  would  be  granted  a monopoly  in respect  of  the  exploitation  of the invention within Firenze for a number of years  (Nwokocha,  2012). After this, any person would be free to exploit the invention or introduce further improvements to the technology.

Copyright awareness on the other hand, arose with the growth of the printing press, and the need for the authors and publishers of popular works to profit for their task. In

1709 the UK Parliament enacted the world’s first Copyright Act, the so-called Statue of Anne. This Act established principles of copyright law which remain valid today and have developed to the current Copyright laws existing in most countries. Subsequently,  the  United  National  Bureau  for  protection  of  intellectual  property relocated to Geneva in 1960 and in 1967 the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO)  was  established  by a  treaty  as  an  agency  of  the  United  Nations.    The establishment of WIPO naturally led to sensitization, awareness and growing interest

in  intellectual  property  protection.  Companies  started  investing  in  research  and development.  The evolution reveals the emergence  of 3 basic trends in  intellectual property; Research, Development, and Innovation over the decades that follow.  Idris (2012: 19) identifies these trends as follows:

    Protection has been strengthened, broadened and harmonized  internationally

especially in the 1980’s

      The number of applicants and grants has risen exponentially between 1980’s and 2001 as compared to the previous period especially in United States and United  Kingdom.  Basically two  technical  fields contributed  to  these surge, Information and communication technology, (ICT) and Biotechnology.

      Innovation has also expanded rapidly. An important indicator is the increase in research and development spending,

Today, intellectual  property is a value concept. It forces us to acknowledge  value conflicts in public policies of various governments and firm’s and also  conflicts of value  in  inventions,  creations  and  innovations.For   many  firms  in  this  modern economy,  intellectual  property is their most important  asset not  physical property. Companies engage in acquisition of intellectual property due to various reasons. Such reasons as the expected benefit that is accruable to it.  Some of these benefits they believe will have a positive effect on the performance of the company and the various indices  of performance.    This  includes  the  productivity  of the  firm,  profitability, sustainability, and long term viability of the organization. Marrand Neely(2003) argue that a firm’s value is often partly based on the intangible intellectual capital which is referred to as intellectual property that it possesses.

Just like  the  physical  properties,  intellectual  properties  also  need  to be  protected. Countries usually establish a system whereby these properties are managed in order to not only benefit those that generated the ideas leading to the establishment of these properties, but also to be used as an economic  tool.Northern Italy is said to be the cradle of intellectual property system. In recent time however, more emphasis is being placed on such properties rather than physical properties. It is necessary to note here that even though the term is increasingly used today, it is still little understood. For too many people, it is still an obscured legal concept of little relevance to everyday

life. In most developing countries, intellectual property is a novel concept especially for manufacturing companies and public research institutes.Yet when these properties are introduced, they need to be established, protected and generally managed by the inventors, owners and other stake holders like managers and operators of industries. Secondly, the process of protection of these new products cannot again be effectively established  without a well-balanced,  affordable and reliable system of management thus the management of Intellectual Property. Thirdly, most writers’believe that if IP is linked to firm performance, firms and investors would benefit from this concept. It is also probable that the expected future economic benefit will flow to the entity and the cost of the asset can be reliably measured.These requirements are consistent with international standards, yet the criteria are rarely met by IP and so IP is hardly ever disclosed quantitatively in the accounts

The  human  capacity  for  intelligence,  creativity,  and  collaboration  produces  an abundance  of new information,  inventions,  and artistic creations.  As long as  these fruits   of   the   mind   are   afforded   legal   protection,   they  constitute   intellectual property(Kamil,  2000).  In his own contribution,  Kubis  (2011),      states  that  IP is known in the industrial world as the most valued asset owned by a company because it is generally believed that an investment in knowledge always pays. He goes further to say that  as Ben Franklin quoted, “if a man empties his purse into his head, no man can take  it away from  him”   Current  development    in the  global  economy have brought the best interest about the ascendency of intellectual property. The brick and mortar economy is being replaced with economy of ideas. In the new global economy, wealth  is  generated  towards  harnessing  the  value  of  knowledge.  The  concept  of creative  enterprise has evolved  from ideas, innovations,  inventions and knowledge and investors and company/firms are increasingly investing on that.  Innovators thus seek property rights that allow them to own their creativity and innovations  in  the same way that they can own physical property.

Intellectual property is seen as a key concern in the quest for growth, development andcompetitiveness. Advancement in knowledge broadly conceived is a key driver of economicprosperity in the twenty-first century. The ongoing revolution in information and communicationtechnologies  (ICT) has dramatically reduced the costs of creating, processing and transmittingknowledge, both nationwide and across borders. The pace

of  innovation   has  acceleratedsignificantly.   These  developments   lead   to   closer international  economic  integration  and  morerapid  innovation  which  create  new challenges  for IP regimes and policymaking.At  the same time, both the innovation processes itself, and the production activities of firms are globalizing rapidly. To be competitive in the globalized economy, the United Nations member states (UN) have tomaintain,  adapt  and  create  institutional  and  legal  frameworks  conducive  to  the creation ofknowledge and its commercialization (Adewopo, 2000).Certain rights are thus allowed to these properties which are used to control the usage.

Intellectual property rights have a key role to play in thisregard.This raises challenges in  terms  of  managing,  protecting  and  enforcingintellectual  property  rights  across borders.  Belle,  (2006)  observes  thatcountries  with  economies  in  transition  face additional  challenges  to  the challenges  experienced  by  developed  countries.  They struggle to integrate into theincreasingly global production networks and to find their own niche  in the increasingly  globalvalue  chains.  To be successful,  they need  to assign high priority to developing  their  owninnovative  capacities,  as well as their ability to absorb and adapt technological innovations fromabroad, and to move up the value chain over time. Again, Intellectual property regimes have a key role to play in this regard.Like other property, intellectual property may be commercially exploited.

There are laws on intellectual  properties  but most people do not know about  the existence of such laws while those that know about it do not know how to enforce it when violated due to ignorance  or so many other factors militating  against it.This situation is applicable mainly to developing countries in which Nigeria is one. Large organizations, industries and manufacturing firms are increasingly seeking intellectual property through investments and research and development. Again, this is applicable mainly to developed countries. In the third world countries, most manufacturing firms do not even have a research and development, (R&D), department. Huge amount of money is spent on research  and development  and these investments  are meant for breakthroughs   such  that   protection  against   competitors   and  intruders  becomes necessary. In the advanced world, companies invest billions annually in research and development also to differentiate themselves from their competitors and ultimately to offer superior products in terms of quality, cost and future superiority. The result of such efforts however include both tangible and intangible asset such as  intellectual

property.  Intellectual  property  is  thus  a  significant  contributor  to  a firm’s  value. Gassman,  Zeigler,  Ruther,  and  Bader(2012:18),  believe  that  intangible  asset  can account for more than 70% of a firm’s value. It is therefore a considerable valuable asset for most companies but managers often do not fully appreciate and extract value from those assets. The problem then lies on how to manage and/or implement a plan to successfully turn this substantial market value into cash to meet needs.  Secondly, how does one significantly extract value from it so that it will contribute to a firm’s sustainability,  efficiency,  and  general  performance?  It  is  therefore  obvious  that management of any organization cannot be effectively and efficiently done without protection  of  these  properties.    To  protect  them,  intellectual  property  rights  are obtained  as tools  to use. These rights also act as incentives  to invent or innovate, enhancement  of  technology innovation  andas  tools for ensuring equitable  and fair utilization of genetic resources (Gassman et al.,2012).

The first industrial property protection in Nigeria was in respect of Trademarks. This was with regards to the trade mark proclamation in1900 by which the UK Trade Mark Act   wasmade   applicable   to   the   then  Protectorate   of  Southern   Nigeria.   This wasextended  to the entire country following the amalgamation  of  the Southernand Northern Protectorates in 1914 (Wakhungu. Nyukuri, and Sikoyo, 2009)

In respect of patents, in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, patentsregistered in the UK were in Nigeria.The  colonial masters first introduced  the patent system  in the former colonyof Lagos and Southern Nigeria in 1900 by the Patents Ordinance No. 17 of1900  and  the  Patents  Proclamation  Ordinance  No. 27 of  1900  respectively.The Patents  Proclamation  Ordinance  No.  12  of  1902  introduced  similarlegislation  in Northern Nigeria. The respective instruments provided for afull-fledged patent office headed by aRegistrar as was provided in the patent acts. However, in Okafor(2012), it is believed thatthe introduction of patent administrative institution was nevermeant to encourage  either  indigenous  inventive  activity,  local  research  and  development, innovation  or to  accomplish an effective  transfer  oftechnology  but instead  it was geared towards the protection of propertyrights in machinery technology relevant for the exploitation of gold andother mineral and human resources in the colonies thereby enriching their own country.

Following  the  amalgamation  of Southern  and  Northern  Nigeria  in 1914,  separate legislation  for  the  different  regions  were  repealed  andsubstituted  by  the  Patents Ordinance No. 30 of 1916The new law only provided for the registration in Nigeria ofpatents already granted in the UK, an anomaly that persisted even long afterNigeria became independent  in 1960. Effectively,  Nigerians or otherapplicants  had first to apply to the UK patent office to be granted a patentfor an invention before proceeding to Nigeria to have it registered. It alsomeant that it was the UK law that substantively applied  to  patentapplications  and  grant  in Nigeria  up  till  1970  (Wutungu,  et,  al.

2009).In 1970, the Patents and Designs Act No. 60 was enacted.

The Act was modeled on the draft law prepared in 1965 bythe United  International Bureau for the Protection of Intellectual Property(BPIP),  the precursor of the World Intellectual  Property  Organization,(WIPO).    Beyond  just  nationalizing  the  patent application and grant process,there appeared to be no policy rationale or consideration as such behindadopting the model given that there was no national policy with regard to itsindustrial and technological  development  (WIPO, 2002) However, despite the fact   that   thecountry   had    since   articulated   its   industrial   and   technological developmentpolicy  and  plan, these have not yet been reflected  in the international propertylaws as the 1970Act is still in force.

1.2  Statement of the Problem

Intellectual  Property is an important  variable in the economic development  of  any nation.    Its   importance    in   invention,    innovation,    and    creation    cannot   be overemphasized. Again, the importance of these later concepts in achieving economic growth calls for attention. On the other hand, economic  growth cannot be achieved without developing the manufacturing  sector.In fact,  it is the manufacturing  sector that drives the economy of most nations. These  firms thus need to perform well in order that the purpose for which they are  established  will be achieved. In order to achieve  this,  they  must  be  able  to  meet  with  technological  changes,  thus,  the manufacturing companies’  need to  be making, creating and inventing products and processes.

The creations and inventions having been generated from ideas from human capital is therefore  protected  using  various  tools.  IP  serves  as  a  tool  to  develop  various

aspectsand various sectors of the economy including Manufacturing Sector, Industrial Sector, Economic  Sector, Education  Sectorand  general development  of  the nation. This has placed it in the fore front of the priorities of economic policies by various governments of various nations especially in the developed economy.

However,in Nigeria, the story is different. This is because thecountry does not seem to recognize the degree of the importance of this concept judging from the attention they ascribe to it. Often times, they relegate it to the background while  in the formation and  implementation  of government  policies.  Zambon  (2004)  indicates  this  in his observation  that there are a few quantitative  studies of  intellectual property in the developing  countries  because  the  nature  of the  relationship  between  IP  and  firm performance is a virgin territory. Again, Shakina and Barajas (2000) believe that the phenomenon of intellectual property is growing in importance and the relevance is increasing  but  some  countries  are  not  responding  to  the  sensitization  especially developing countries.

Furthermore, Nnabuike (2000) in his study believes that the effect ofIP management on  research  and  development   department   of  manufacturing   companies  attracts benefits but this is not the case with most African countries  due to their negative attitude towards the development of R&D offices in their  firms.The above situation could however be attributed to a number of factors militating against the nation.Such factors could be found in the following brief text;

Nigeria  is  still  classified  as  a  developing  country.  In  the  developed  economy, intellectual property is used as a tool for advancing technology innovation but this may  not  necessarily  work  in  the  same  way  as  developing  or  under  developed countries. This is because most developing countries have very low bargaining power and weak technology capabilities. Also factors like corruption, counterfeiting, poverty level and several other facilities that will support the operative system and process of the term militates against its’ potentials.

Secondly,  only  about  one  half  of  corporate  leaders  in  the  developing  countries understands the values and importance of intellectual properties management and is actively  involved  in the strategic  planning  relating  to  intellectual  properties.  This limited  integration  of  intellectual  property  management   and  strategic  planning

reflectsa number of obstacles.This was observed in a recent survey of executives who manage intellectual property portfolios where respondents indicate these obstacles.

Thirdly,  in most developing  countries  including  Nigeria,  Intellectual  Property  has been mismanaged, and undervalued. Most people in our society generally see it as a concept  for  the first  world  countries.  This has  been an impediment  on  creations, innovations  and inventions.  On the other hand, creation,  innovation  and invention would naturally positively affect an industry’s performance  but  due to the lack of attention paid to IP in our industries, we often lose the opportunity it provides. People usually  look  at  the  challenges  which  is  the   difficult  task  associated  with  the acquisition and usage of these rights. Most  often, they do not look at the benefits accruable to it.

Fourthly, intellectual property management is usually delegated mainly to the hands of legalpersonnel  who  know little or nothing about strategic  management.  This is because  there  is  a  common  view  that  intellectual  property  portfolios  bears  few strategic  consequences  and therefore does not  need  managers.  Of course this is a wrong perception.

One reason that the cost of doing business in Africa is high is that firms often are required to make additional unofficial payments to ensure a steady supply of public services.  This report focuses on the performance of firms in Nigeria’s manufacturing sector  drawing  on  the  United   Nation   International   Development   Organisation (UNIDO) firm survey carried out in 2001. The objective of that study was to identify the policy issues that needed to be tackled to reverse decades of poor performance in the  economy  of  developing  nations  of  the  world.  The  incidence  of  additional payments with regard to public services and licenses and permits actually decreases with firm size.

Another  problem  which  has  also  been  observed  is  the  lack  of  the  information necessary  to  apply the  analytic  especially  with  respect  to  the  incentive  theory of intellectual property.  To what extent is the production of specific sorts of intellectual products  dependent  upon  maintenance  of  intellectual  property  protection?   With respect to some fields, some  commentators have agreed that it does to a very little extent. Others also note that other monetary or non-monetary rewards such as profits

attributable to lead time, inventors, opportunities to speculate in markets that will be affected  by the revelation  of their inventions,  the prestige  enjoyed  by  artistic  and scientific  innovators,  academic  tenure,  and the love of art would  be sufficient  to sustain  current  levels  of  production  even  in  the  absence  of  intellectual-property protection. A third group of commentators sharply disagree. The truth is that we do not  have  enough  information  to  know  who  is  right.   Empirical  work  however hassuggested that patent rights has been more important in stimulating innovation in certain industries (e.g., pharmaceuticals and chemicals) than in others, but has failed to answer the ultimate question of  whether the stimulus to innovation is worth its costs. With respect to forms of intellectual-property protection other than patents, we know even less. Again,  those values could be promoted equally well by providing persons rights to land or shares in private corporations.  Consequently, properties may be classified  private when followed strictly but the problem still remains that there will be little help in determining which resources to privatize and which to leave to the  public. To the extent that intellectual-property  rights have economic value and may be bought and sold, gained and lost, may contribute to their owners’ abilities to avoid  guilt, become autonomous,  engage  in independent  political action,  etc., is a huge reason for IP to be managed and protected. Unfortunately, this is not being given the attention it deserves in our country thus leading to huge loss in benefits accruable to it.

Suffice it to say that most company’s stake holders and operators of industry would naturally  and  intuitively  expect  the  efficiency  of  IP  utilization  to  have  a  direct influence  on the  performance  of  firms,  thereby  constituting  an  issue  of  practical interest to managers, stakeholders and shareholders. This also makes it an important area for research. However, the question is, does it actually happen that way? A lot has to be investigated  for one to know this. Many writers agree that it does while others disagree.  Again for others, there is no compelling evidence that it does. This has posed few empirical investigations on the relationship between firm performance and IP with difficulties. Zambon (2004), states   that no universally accepted method of  measuring  IP  exists  thereby  making  quantitative  testing  of  the  relationship challenging.  There are  a few quantitative studies but none of these have evidenced data  especially  in  developing  countries.  Where  data  is  available,  for  example  in Australia, most studies rarely use it which is surprising as IP reporting disclosure in

Australia  and  most developed  part of the world  is well described.  In Nigeria  for example, a lot has been written about IP but few are empirical and the writers not only concentrate  on the capital cities of Lagos and Abuja, but also  concentrate  on the problems of acquisition and enforcement. Other areas like the challenges encountered while operation is going on, the effect it has on performance and the management and control of these rights are rarely seen as an area of interest. However, some go further to check  whether  IP interacts  with the  tangible  assets to affect  firm  performance. Accordingly the purpose of this study is to quantitatively examine the effect IP has on firm’s performance.

A practical  guideline  on  intellectual  property  issues  especially  for  manufacturing companies, other organizations and institutions would in the opinion of the researcher enrich the understanding of manufacturing industries, scholars, and other stakeholders who are working in the field. It will also go a long way in improving our economic activities and creating wealth both for the innovators, manufacturing companies and the  country  in  general.  It  will  again  encourage  more  innovative  activities  and encourage  the manufacturing  firms  to  perform better. Failure to do so will on the other hand result to further deterioration of the above factors and cause more negative attitude towards creation, innovation and invention which will again lead to negative effect   on   manufacturing   companies   thereby   affecting   the   nation   negatively. Consequent upon this, the study on the effects of intellectual property management on performance ofselected manufacturing firms is being undertaken.

1.3       Objectives of the Study

The objective of the study seeks to explore the level of understanding of the concept IP in Nigeria  especially  in the  South  East  Nigeria  and  toarouse  the  attention  on intellectual  property management  and  its characteristics  in the  business  field  and especially in manufacturing companies. The study seeks to  explore the activities of manufacturing  firms  as it  pertains  to  management  and  control  of  their  intangible assets known as intellectual properties and the way it affects the performance of these firms.The  following specific objectives are  therefore formulated  to help unravelthe uncertainties surrounding the study;

1.    To determine the extent to which protection of intellectual property through trade mark affects the market share in manufacturing firms in the South East Nigeria.

2.    To ascertain the degree to which patents induce creativity in manufacturing firms in the same zone.

3.    To establish the level to which intellectual property protection fulfills its mission in manufacturing firms.

4.    To analyze the risks involved in intellectual property registration to compare with expected benefits.

5.    To  determine  the  extent  to  which  corporate  managers  are  involved  in  the management of intellectual property in their firms.

1.4       Research Questions

Based on the objectives of the study the following research questions are formulated to guide the conduct of the study:

1.   To what extent does protection of intellectual  property through trade  mark affect market share in manufacturing firms in the south east Nigeria?

2.   To what degree do patents induce creativity in manufacturing  firms in the

same zone?

3.   To  what  level  does  intellectual  property  protection  fulfill  its  mission  in manufacturing firms?

4.   To what extent are the expected benefits of intellectual property registration higher than the risks involved especially in the south east Nigeria?

5.   To what extent  do corporate  managers  get involved  in the management  of intellectual property portfolios and what are the implications?

1.5       Research Hypotheses

The following  research hypotheses  are stated to use in proffering  solutions  to  the problem under investigation.

1.     Protection of intellectual property through trade mark positively affects the

market share to a very high extent in manufacturing firms.

2.     Patent rights induce creativity in manufacturing firms to a very high degree.

3.     Intellectual   property   protection   significantly   fulfills   its   mission   in manufacturing firms.

4.     The expected benefits of intellectual property registration are higher  than the risks involved to a very high degree.

5.     Corporate   managers   do   not   oftensignificantly   get   involved   in   the management of intellectual property portfolios and this result to  negative implications.

1.6       Significance of the Study

This study suggests that intellectual property offer a real but in some cases  limited incentive to innovate and thus leading to creations of products and processes in some industries and manufacturing  firms. At the end of this study,  the researcher  would have developed a very comprehensive response and insight into these manufacturing companies’ characteristics as regards its intellectual property management and control that other researchers could use to define the  boundaries of their studies and make their work more transparent and  comparable.  Also, much literature and controversy over intellectual property have evolved in recent time but with more emphasis on the legal aspects like policies, and enforcements. However, there is paucity of literature that   examines   the   status   of  intellectual   property   and   its   developmental   and management  aspects  as it affects  industrial  growth,  productivity,  performance  and competition. Finally, other studies done on intellectual property are based mainly on copyright  of  books,  music,  works  of  art  etc.    This  paper  seeks  to  address  that seemingly neglected area in our firms.

1.7       Scope of the study

The  scope  of  this  study  includes  Theoretical,   Geographical   and  Time   scope respectively.The  study deals with the conceptual framework, theoretical framework, and empirical review of all the relevant variables in the topic.However, the origin and evolution  of  intellectual  property  both  in  Nigeria  and  beyond  is  still  extensively discussed both in the introduction of the paper and the literature review.

The specific issues covered in this work are various definitions of various writers of the concept of all the variables in the work including but not limited to  Intellectual Property,  Management,  Performance  and even Manufacturing  Companies.  Each of these writers has his own perception of the concept of these variables but basically, they all point  to the same  thing;  Intellectual  Property  as  Intangible  Asset,  use of

intellectual property, methods of acquisition and application, IP policies in different countries and  effects of intellectual property on different company’s productivity, and profitability.  Furthermore  discussion  on the different  types of  intellectual  property rights  (IPR)  and  their  functions  for  example,  Trademark,  Trade  secret,  Patent, Copyright,   Traditional  Knowledge   and   Geographical   Indication  were  explicitly explored. Theories of intellectual  property and performance  were also delved into. The work again  ventured  into  other  areas  like  IP valuation,  IP theft,  decision  to innovate  and  reasons  why  IP  holder  should  protect  his  property.  Other  areas  of coverage  are  various  works  of other  authors  on  the  relationship  between  IP  and performance in manufacturing firms and some other related topics. These areas were also  extensively grappled  with and their opinions, views, conclusions and findings noted. The study then delved into the different types of Intellectual Property rights, the rate of acquisition of intellectual property rights in Africa as compared with other parts of the world and finally the institutions that drive the process.

1.8       Profile of Selected Organizations

There  are  371  registered  manufacturing  firms  in  the  South  East  Nigeria.  The Manufacturers Association of Nigeria, MAN is grouped into ten (10) sectoral groups with many subsectors. The sectors are;

Food, Beverages and Tobacco

Chemicals and Pharmaceuticals

Domestic and Industrial Plastic, Rubber, and Foam

Basic Metal, Iron and Steel and Fabricated Metal Products

Pulp, Paper and Paper Products, Printing, Publishing and Packaging

Electricals and Electronics

Textile, Wearing Apparels, Carpet, Leather/ Leather Footwear

Wood and Wood Products including Furniture

Non-Metallic Mineral Product

Motor Vehicle and Miscellaneous Assembly

The research was carried out in some selected manufacturing firms in the South East Nigeria. The south east Nigeria is made up of five (5) states. The states are Anambra, Abia,  Ebonyi,  Enugu  and  Imo  states.  A  purposeful  technique  was  employed  in selecting companies for inclusion in this research with each  statebeing represented.

Secondly,  the seven firms were selected  from different  sectors thereby covering  a wide range of the sectors. These firms are;     Jacobs  Wine  Umuahia  Abia,  representing  Food  Beverage  



This material content is developed to serve as a GUIDE for students to conduct academic research


EFFECTS OF INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY MANAGEMENT ON PERFORMANCE OF SELECTED MANUFACTURING FIRMS IN SOUTH EAST NIGERIA

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