Since the late 1990s, instead of encouraging first-movers to challenge and take
risks, innovation related policies of Korean government, such as science and
technology policies, industrial policies, and university policies, induced the
first-movers to avoid risks. Likewise, these same policies also blocked out active
interactions between each level of technology. For these reasons, we criticize
here that the Korean government has failed to nourish first-mover innovation
ecosystem despite the enormous expansion in the government budget for
innovation. Based on such critical assessments, this research suggests that
Korean government should focus on abolishing bureaucratic-controlled
administration, which revolves around controls and interferences, and also on
establishing the innovation ecosystem. To these ends, we suggest a government
reform transforming Korean government into cooperative government, strategic
government, and innovative government.