Abstract

The tertiary revolution in advanced economies is a reality not only in terms of employment and value added but also in the growing attention of researchers that are developing new approaches in services innovation studies. The theme of innovation, as the ability to adapt to a complex environment characterized by high levels of variety, variability and uncertainty, along new dimensions and perspectives, is becoming more and more relevant although with different and sometimes contradictory positions reflecting previous and steady paradigms. Existing concepts and theoretical perspectives of service and innovation, although recent and fragmented, show how the approaches to innovation in services are continuously evolving towards new conceptualizations which are more consistent with the changes of the critical determinants of services dynamics. Within these models there are different cues to deepen and wide areas to develop: in this paper we try to outline a new conceptual model based on these considerations and on an empirical study on fifty case histories whose aim is to interpret the coming of the new immaterial economy that goes beyond the traditional boundaries between services and manufacturing and gives the tertiary sector a new active role in the economic growth.