The tradeoffs of brokerage in innovation networks: a study of Latin American cities

Brokers play a critical role in the evolution of innovation systems. However, accessing and diffusing knowledge into the system imply costs and requires capacities. Using patent data to analyze inter-city networks in Latin America, we revisit the debate on the benefits and costs of knowledge networks. We identify broker cities, differentiating between intra-regional and extra-regional connections, and we estimate the effects of brokerage on patenting outcomes between 2006 and 2017. Our findings reveal that cities holding a central position in the network show higher patenting activity; however, being broker, particularly bridging Latin America with extra-regional cities, negatively influences patenting outcomes.