著者

高橋 美多

出版者

一般財団法人 アジア政経学会

雑誌

アジア研究 (ISSN:00449237)

巻号頁・発行日

vol.55, no.1, pp.40-53, 2009-01-31 (Released:2014-09-15)

参考文献数

24

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This paper discusses the recent transfer of technology to Chinese software firms from Japanese software development businesses. Studies of the Chinese software industry agree that its rapid expansion was promoted by strong domestic economic growth and the support of the Chinese government. The literature, however, overlooks an important point: offshore software development has helped China’s software firms acquire advanced technology.Our interviews revealed that, since the end of the 1990s, certain Chinese software firms have conducted not only coding and testing, but also design through offshore development. These firms had had difficulty in obtaining design skills by themselves. This fact suggests that technology transfer to Chinese software firms through offshore software development is an important factor in the rapid expansion of the industry. Based on this awareness, this paper focuses on the division of work between Japanese firms and Chinese firms and describes how technology transfer to Chinese software firms has occurred.The conclusions are as follows. In the 1990s, Chinese software firms conducted coding and testing on offshore software developed in Japan. However, since the end of the 1990s, some Chinese software firms have not only conducted coding and testing, but also design. Chinese firms have thus acquired design skills through joint development with Japan. This fact means that offshore software development from Japan helped Chinese software firms acquire advanced technology.The significance of this paper is that it focuses on the technological progress of the Chinese software industry from the viewpoint of the international division of work, which has been overlooked in previous studies. The entrusting of design to China is not now being implemented on a large scale, but there is a chance that it might grow in the future. This trend will accelerate technological progress in the Chinese software industry further.