This article examines some of the distinctive characteristics of South Korean firms in relation to their research and development (R&D) and export activities affecting the efforts to retain intellectual property rights (IPR). In particular, this study shows how firms of different sizes (small and medium enterprises: SMEs vs. large-scale enterprises: LEs) tend to hold the ownership of IPR differently. To test the heterogeneous effects of the firms’ innovative capacity, this study utilizes the firm level data of 6,138 Korean firms during 2006–2014. In the years 2006–2014, South Korea concluded free trade agreements (FTAs) with numerous economies and accelerated its market competition and integration into the global economy. Our empirical results found that R&D activities of both SMEs and LEs were active during the period; however, SMEs in particular took a great stride in their patenting and innovation activities. Findings of our article also show that the more companies engaged in export activities, the more actively patents grew. Furthermore, the companies in the information and communications technology (ICT) industry are more aggressive in patenting activities.
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