Synergies Between Web-Based Open Innovation Platforms and Open Information Infrastructures

Abstract

Open Innovation is defined as “the use of ideas and market knowledge – both internal and externals – to develop innovations” (CEN/TS 16655-5:2014) and it is based on this premise: “Valuable ideas can come from inside or outside the company and can go to market from inside or outside the company as well.” Open Innovation has resulted in a set of collaborative tools to help involved agents develop networks where they can share ideas, exchange knowledge and propose new challenges and relies in what are called technology e-brokers or innovation markets. These tools consist of web-based platforms where companies can publish innovation challenges and other agents can analyze and propose potential solutions. They are used to capture external knowledge and to assemble it with the company’s internal knowledge base, acting as intermediaries where innovation-involved agents can establish links and start collaboration activities. Although these collaborative innovation platforms or markets are extremely useful, their functionality could be improved with the integration of the content provided by open archives and institutional repositories. Using the integration opportunities offered by repositories, developers of Open Innovation platforms can reach additional content and information about innovators to support idea development and validation.