The interactive relationships and development effects among the KIBS firms and their clients in Taiwan: A comparative study

In the last decade, relevant studies have gradually emphasized one of the major trends impacting developed economies, that is, the increasing importance and continuing expansion of KIBS in current economic development. Therefore, this study first attempted to explore the roles and functions of KIBS in the evolution of an area innovation system. Secondly, this study analyzed the actual interactions between KIBS firms and their clients, and the role difference of KIBS by examining the evolution of the local innovation systems separately centered in Hsinchu and Tainan Science-Based Industrial Park in Taiwan. Based on the result of this study, the findings are that the cumulative interactions led to increasing demand for and reliance on KIBS, prompted the emergence of needs for specialized support in many different functions, and resulted in gradually more important roles of KIBS firms in the industrial interface, that is, gradually transform into influential partners of their clients, and not merely knowledge providers.