Research on commercial potential evaluation of newly & emerging technology: A case study of graphene

Rapidly increasing competition of technological revolution drive all participants in the market to pay attention to the prospect of New and Emerging Science & Technologies (NESTs), which are newly invented, fast changing and developing, and have relatively limited applications in the marketplace. Therefore, a systematic method to evaluate the commercial potential of these NESTs is essential for industrial community to win in the marketplace. Based on patent data, this paper proposes an evaluation framework that includes technology maturity assessment, technology opportunities identification and competitive environment analysis. We demonstrate our approach with empirical analysis of Graphene. The results show that this study is beneficial to supporting policy-makers in making strategic technical decisions so as to enhance their technological innovation capability and international competitiveness.