Abstract
This chapter investigates the topic of how open innovation is actually implemented by companies, according to a conceptual approach in which open and closed models of innovation represent the two extremes of a continuum of different openness degrees; though, these are not the only two possible models. By means of a survey conducted among Italian manufacturing companies, this chapter sheds light on the many different ways in which companies open their innovation processes. Four main models emerge from the empirical study, which are investigated in depth in order to understand the relationship between a set of firm-specific factors (such as size, R&D intensity, sector of activity, company organization) and the specific open innovation model adopted by a company.
