This study examined the effects of firm resources, ownership type and intellectual property system on the firm innovation of companies operating in emerging countries. To test the supposed hypothesis, a sample created with data Orbis was used. A sample consisting of 1682 companies (after cleaning), spread across 18 different emerging countries across the globe was used. To test the main research question, a regression analysis was performed. The results indicated that firm resources and an effective intellectual property system positively influence the levels of innovation within firms. Additionally, the moderation effects between firm resources & intellectual property system and firm resources & foreign ownership both showed a positive relation to firm innovation as well. As expected, the moderation effect of domestic ownership on firm resources to firm innovation showed a negative correlation. This study failed to prove that the direct effects of all three ownership types and interaction effect of firm resources with state ownership of firms have a significant effect on the innovative capabilities of firms operating in emerging countries. Nevertheless, a model was created which could serve as a solid foundation for future research into the determinants of firm innovation in emerging economies.