ABSTRACT
Environmentally benign technologies (EBTs) are a peculiar category of technological innovation that enables firms' compliance with the prevailing regime of environmental policy. The contribution of the diffusion of technologies to economic development has been immensely explored in research over the years. The scope of the diffusion of new technologies can generally be approached from the perspective of the economic level at which the diffusion takes place. Stoneman noted that though the spread of the usage of a technology within a firm may be as important as the spread of its use across firms, inter-firm diffusion has attracted more attention especially in a world of large and 'global' firms. Metcalfe described the diffusion of technological innovations as the process by which new technologies displace, or substitute for, existing technologies. It is important to note that the theory of diffusion and competitive selection brought to the fore the significance of the evolution of the technology itself.
