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Whither information security? Examining the complementarities and substitutive effects among IT and information security firms

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  • Khansa, Lara
  • Liginlal, Divakaran

Abstract

The last few years have seen an increase in the mergers and acquisitions (M&A) activity among information security firms and other information technology (IT) firms offering complementary technologies. Using social network analysis methods, we investigate the characteristics and underlying dynamics of these M&A activities in the United States (US) over the period 1996–2008. Our results reveal a 400% increase from 1996 to 2006 in the cohesiveness of the network linking the information security firms and IT firms considered in our analysis. This, in turn, implies a move towards industry convergence. In particular, we show that M&As involving identity and access management (IAM) firms have become twice more central to M&As by IT firms in 2003 (compared to 2002), reflecting an increasing trend among IT firms to integrate IAM technologies within their products. The results in this paper provide M&A managers of IT firms with strategic insights into which complementary information security firms ought to be acquired.

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  • Khansa, Lara & Liginlal, Divakaran, 2012. "Whither information security? Examining the complementarities and substitutive effects among IT and information security firms," International Journal of Information Management, Elsevier, vol. 32(3), pages 271-281.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:ininma:v:32:y:2012:i:3:p:271-281
    DOI: 10.1016/j.ijinfomgt.2011.11.015
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    1. Li, Ling & He, Wu & Xu, Li & Ash, Ivan & Anwar, Mohd & Yuan, Xiaohong, 2019. "Investigating the impact of cybersecurity policy awareness on employees’ cybersecurity behavior," International Journal of Information Management, Elsevier, vol. 45(C), pages 13-24.

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