Open Innovation and Coopetition

Abstract While the open innovation literature has acknowledged competitors as a source of innovative knowledge, competitors have been relatively neglected relative to other sources such as universities, suppliers, customers, and employees. Research in open innovation increasingly includes this counter-intuitive partner and acknowledges that the drivers and management of the open innovation practice with competitors are different from those with a non-competitive partner. In parallel and independently from the open innovation literature, research on coopetition and coopetitive innovation has grown and explored when, why, and how a competitor is a relevant partner for innovation. These frameworks develop by the coopetition literature brought into the open innovation research to generate new insights and a whole research agenda. The main insight is: coopetitive open innovation, defined as open innovation with competitors embracing a “coopetitive mindset” and specific managerial principles (i.e., cooperation and competition, should be simultaneously pursued and the competition dimension should not be reduced).