TY - JOUR

T1 - User-innovators and “local” information

T2 - The case of mountain biking

AU - Lüthje, Christian

AU - Herstatt, Cornelius

AU - Hippel, Eric Von

PY - 2005/8

Y1 - 2005/8

N2 - In a study of innovations developed by mountain bikers, we find that user-innovators almost always utilize “local” information – information already in their possession or generated by themselves – both to determine the need for and to develop the solutions for their innovations. We argue that this finding fits the economic incentives operating on users. Local need information will in general be the most relevant to user-innovators, since the bulk of their innovation-related rewards typically come from in-house use. User-innovators will increasingly tend to rely on local solution information as the stickiness of non-local solution information rises. When user-innovators do rely on local information, it may be possible to predict the general nature of the innovations they might develop.

AB - In a study of innovations developed by mountain bikers, we find that user-innovators almost always utilize “local” information – information already in their possession or generated by themselves – both to determine the need for and to develop the solutions for their innovations. We argue that this finding fits the economic incentives operating on users. Local need information will in general be the most relevant to user-innovators, since the bulk of their innovation-related rewards typically come from in-house use. User-innovators will increasingly tend to rely on local solution information as the stickiness of non-local solution information rises. When user-innovators do rely on local information, it may be possible to predict the general nature of the innovations they might develop.

KW - Management studies

U2 - 10.1016/j.respol.2005.05.005

DO - 10.1016/j.respol.2005.05.005

M3 - Journal articles

VL - 34

SP - 951

EP - 965

JO - Research Policy

JF - Research Policy

SN - 0048-7333

IS - 6

ER -