Does Geographic Clustering Still Benefit High Tech New Ventures? The Case of the Cambridge/Boston Biotech Cluster

Abstract

An empirical study of scientific communication among biotechnology companies supports the belief that geographic clustering does produce increased scientific exchange among companies. A comparison of companies within a constrained geographic area with those more dispersed shows a significantly higher level of scientific communication among the former. Scientific communication declines rapidly with plupical separation. Critical of the formation of cluster – based scientific communication networks is the presence of both universities and large firms from the same industry.