As rightly put by the authors, progress in policy depends not only on finding the right economic levers, but on closer engagement with firms and technological practice. The risk of such initiatives is to be limited to facilitating specific transactions and projects between companies and academic consultants. It is not clear how “virtual” these programmes are, i.e. whether there is a structure, staffed with dedicated and competent personnel, or whether it is mainly an “elaborate database” with motivated academics turned to the cause of industry support.