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The internationalisation of British and German start-up companies in high-technology industries

Author

Listed:
  • Bürgel, Oliver
  • Fier, Andreas
  • Licht, Georg
  • Murray, Gordon
  • Nerlinger, Eric A.

Abstract

Established theories in international business come to different conclusions when specifically applied to the analysis of the international activities of start-up companies in high-technology industries. Using a new dataset of 495 British and German start-ups operating in high-technology industries, we analyse the differences between those companies that have built up international activities and those which only compete in their home country. Our findings suggest that the key discriminatory variables are: age, the extent to which the product requires customisation, regularity of R&D activities, and the international professional experience of the founders. These findings suggest that internationalisation of New Technology Based Firms is best explained by adopting elements from a number of different theoretical frameworks.

Suggested Citation

  • Bürgel, Oliver & Fier, Andreas & Licht, Georg & Murray, Gordon & Nerlinger, Eric A., 1998. "The internationalisation of British and German start-up companies in high-technology industries," ZEW Discussion Papers 98-34, ZEW - Leibniz Centre for European Economic Research.
  • Handle: RePEc:zbw:zewdip:5207
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    Cited by:

    1. Murray, Gordon C. & Marriott, Richard, 1998. "Why has the investment performance of technology-specialist, European venture capital funds been so poor?," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 27(9), pages 947-976, December.
    2. Spielkamp, Alfred & Berteit, Herbert & Czarnitzki, Dirk & Ransch, Siegfried & Schüssler, Reinhard, 2000. "Forschung, Entwicklung und Innovation in produktionsnahen Dienstleistungsbereichen: Impulse für die ostdeutsche Industrie und Perspektiven," ZEW Dokumentationen 00-01, ZEW - Leibniz Centre for European Economic Research.
    3. Bürgel, Oliver & Fier, Andreas & Licht, Georg & Murray, Gordon, 2000. "Internationalisation of high-tech start-ups and fast growth-evidence for UK and Germany," ZEW Discussion Papers 00-35, ZEW - Leibniz Centre for European Economic Research.
    4. Bürgel, Oliver & Fier, Andreas & Licht, Georg & Murray, Gordon, 2001. "Timing of international market entry of UK and German high-tech start-ups," ZEW Discussion Papers 01-51, ZEW - Leibniz Centre for European Economic Research.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    start-ups; high-technology industries; internationalisation;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • L60 - Industrial Organization - - Industry Studies: Manufacturing - - - General
    • L21 - Industrial Organization - - Firm Objectives, Organization, and Behavior - - - Business Objectives of the Firm
    • F23 - International Economics - - International Factor Movements and International Business - - - Multinational Firms; International Business

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