To boost technological development in the salmon aquaculture industry, the Norwegian government initiated a competition for development licences in 2015. 104 applications were received over the next couple of years, and several years later a total of 24 applications were approved to receive development licenses to accomplish and pursue 24 different technological projects. The development licenses constitute an ambitious political project to promote breakthrough innovations in the aquaculture industry. Through major technological innovations, the environmental and area problems in aquaculture were to be solved. The results so far point towards a technologically diverse future consisting of many new and different solutions, and great variety in production systems.
Based on interviews, and in-depth document studies we report on how the development license scheme impacted technological development, knowledge sharing, and industry structure in the Norwegian salmon industry. In particular, we discuss how license terms to share knowledge during the course of technological development was realized, and how requirements for open knowledge sharing materialized as a surge of patent application. Patent applications quadrupled in the years the competition was open and has since steadily declined. 7 years after the first license was allocated, only 5 out of 24 projects has converted their licenses from development licenses to ordinary commercial licenses. Which also means that only 5 projects have so far completed their projects, and have submitted a final report from the project . These, and other aspects of this ambitious political project for technological development, is discussed.