The impact of piracy on innovation in the presence of technological and market uncertainty

With a single innovating firm facing only technological uncertainty, piracy unambiguously retards innovation. However, with R&D competition where firms face both market and technological uncertainties, we show that if the two firms differ “significantly” with respect to the efficiency in R&D investment, then piracy increases the R&D investment of the less efficient firm and reduces that of the more efficient firm. In this case piracy enhances the overall probability of a successful innovation.