IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/p/hal/journl/halshs-00690216.html
   My bibliography  Save this paper

The choice between joint ventures and non equity-alliances: evidence from Italian firms

Author

Listed:
  • Antonio Majocchi

    (Dipartimento di Ricerche Aziendali - UNIPV - Università degli Studi di Pavia = University of Pavia)

  • Ulrike Mayrhofer

    (Laboratoire de Recherche Magellan - UJML - Université Jean Moulin - Lyon 3 - Université de Lyon - Institut d'Administration des Entreprises (IAE) - Lyon)

  • Joaquin Camps

    (UV - Universitat de València)

Abstract

This paper investigates the factors affecting the choice between joint ventures and non-equity alliances, when firms enter foreign markets. Using a database of Italian firms compiled by the authors with 879 observations, we test the possible effects of firm specific characteristics, host country institutional characteristics and cultural distance on alliance mode choice. Using both transaction cost analysis and the resource based view, our findings demonstrate the crucial role played by firm size and by institutional and political features of host countries. The results concerning the role of functional activities involved and the industrial sector are mixed. Overall, our analysis shows that it is necessary to develop a more integrated approach to understand this complex choice made by firms when expanding abroad.

Suggested Citation

  • Antonio Majocchi & Ulrike Mayrhofer & Joaquin Camps, 2010. "The choice between joint ventures and non equity-alliances: evidence from Italian firms," Post-Print halshs-00690216, HAL.
    • Handle: RePEc:hal:journl:halshs-00690216
    Note: View the original document on HAL open archive server: https://shs.hal.science/halshs-00690216
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://shs.hal.science/halshs-00690216/document
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Erin Anderson & Hubert Gatignon, 1986. "Modes of Foreign Entry: A Transaction Cost Analysis and Propositions," Journal of International Business Studies, Palgrave Macmillan;Academy of International Business, vol. 17(3), pages 1-26, September.
    2. Andrew Delios & Witold J. Henisz, 2003. "Political hazards, experience, and sequential entry strategies: the international expansion of Japanese firms, 1980–1998," Strategic Management Journal, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 24(11), pages 1153-1164, November.
    3. Charles W. L. Hill & Peter Hwang & W. Chan Kim, 1990. "An eclectic theory of the choice of international entry mode," Strategic Management Journal, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 11(2), pages 117-128, February.
    4. David K Tse & Yigang Pan & Kevin Y Au, 1997. "How MNCs Choose Entry Modes and Form Alliances: The China Experience," Journal of International Business Studies, Palgrave Macmillan;Academy of International Business, vol. 28(4), pages 779-805, December.
    5. Pol Herrmann & Deepak K Datta, 2002. "CEO Successor Characteristics and the Choice of Foreign Market Entry Mode: An Empirical Study," Journal of International Business Studies, Palgrave Macmillan;Academy of International Business, vol. 33(3), pages 551-569, September.
    6. Mayrhofer, Ulrike, 2004. "The influence of national origin and uncertainty on the choice between cooperation and merger-acquisition: an analysis of French and German firms," International Business Review, Elsevier, vol. 13(1), pages 83-99, February.
    7. Andrew A. King & Christopher L. Tucci, 2002. "Incumbent Entry into New Market Niches: The Role of Experience and Managerial Choice in the Creation of Dynamic Capabilities," Management Science, INFORMS, vol. 48(2), pages 171-186, February.
    8. Oxley, Joanne E, 1997. "Appropriability Hazards and Governance in Strategic Alliances: A Transaction Cost Approach," The Journal of Law, Economics, and Organization, Oxford University Press, vol. 13(2), pages 387-409, October.
    9. Gatignon, Hubert & Anderson, Erin, 1988. "The Multinational Corporation's Degree of Control over Foreign Subsidiaries: An Empirical Test of a Transaction Cost Explanation," The Journal of Law, Economics, and Organization, Oxford University Press, vol. 4(2), pages 305-336, Fall.
    10. Shih-Fen S Chen & Jean-Francois Hennart, 2002. "Japanese Investors' Choice of Joint Ventures Versus Wholly-owned Subsidiaries in the US: The Role of Market Barriers and Firm Capabilities," Journal of International Business Studies, Palgrave Macmillan;Academy of International Business, vol. 33(1), pages 1-18, March.
    11. Bruce Kogut & Harbir Singh, 1988. "The Effect of National Culture on the Choice of Entry Mode," Journal of International Business Studies, Palgrave Macmillan;Academy of International Business, vol. 19(3), pages 411-432, September.
    12. Daphne Yiu & Shige Makino, 2002. "The Choice Between Joint Venture and Wholly Owned Subsidiary: An Institutional Perspective," Organization Science, INFORMS, vol. 13(6), pages 667-683, December.
    13. Jane W Lu, 2002. "Intra- and Inter-organizational Imitative Behavior: Institutional Influences on Japanese Firms' Entry Mode Choice," Journal of International Business Studies, Palgrave Macmillan;Academy of International Business, vol. 33(1), pages 19-37, March.
    14. Globerman, Steven & Nielsen, Bo Bernhard, 2007. "Equity versus non-equity international strategic alliances involving Danish firms: An empirical investigation of the relative importance of partner and host country determinants," Journal of International Management, Elsevier, vol. 13(4), pages 449-471, December.
    15. Jean-François Hennart & Jorma Larimo, 1998. "The Impact of Culture on the Strategy of Multinational Enterprises: Does National Origin Affect Ownership Decisions?," Journal of International Business Studies, Palgrave Macmillan;Academy of International Business, vol. 29(3), pages 515-538, September.
    16. Chen, Haiyang & Hu, Michael Y., 2002. "An analysis of determinants of entry mode and its impact on performance," International Business Review, Elsevier, vol. 11(2), pages 193-210, April.
    17. Pisano, Gary P, 1989. "Using Equity Participation to Support Exchange: Evidence from the Biotechnology Industry," The Journal of Law, Economics, and Organization, Oxford University Press, vol. 5(1), pages 109-126, Spring.
    18. M. K. Leung & D. Rigby & T. Young, 2003. "Entry of foreign banks in the People's Republic of China: a survival analysis," Applied Economics, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 35(1), pages 21-31.
    19. Fischer, Eileen & Reuber, A Rebecca, 2003. "Targeting Export Support to SMEs: Owners' International Experience as a Segmentation Basis," Small Business Economics, Springer, vol. 20(1), pages 69-82, February.
    20. Rebecca Guidice & Neal Mero, 2007. "Governing joint ventures: tension among principals’ dominant logic on human motivation and behavior," Journal of Management & Governance, Springer;Accademia Italiana di Economia Aziendale (AIDEA), vol. 11(3), pages 261-283, September.
    21. George Nakos & Keith D. Brouthers, 2002. "Entry Mode Choice of SMEs in Central and Eastern Europe," Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice, , vol. 27(1), pages 47-63, January.
    22. John Cantwell & Massimo Colombo, 2000. "Technological and Output Complementarities, and Inter-Firm Cooperation in Information Technology Ventures," Journal of Management & Governance, Springer;Accademia Italiana di Economia Aziendale (AIDEA), vol. 4(1), pages 117-147, March.
    23. Keith D Brouthers, 2002. "Institutional, Cultural and Transaction Cost Influences on Entry Mode Choice and Performance," Journal of International Business Studies, Palgrave Macmillan;Academy of International Business, vol. 33(2), pages 203-221, June.
    24. Farok J Contractor & Sumit K Kundu, 1998. "Modal Choice in a World of Alliances: Analyzing Organizational Forms in the International Hotel Sector," Journal of International Business Studies, Palgrave Macmillan;Academy of International Business, vol. 29(2), pages 325-356, June.
    25. Klaus E. Meyer, 1998. "Direct Investment in Economies in Transition," Books, Edward Elgar Publishing, number 1413.
    26. Siripaisalpipat, Pimonwan & Hoshino, Yasuo, 2000. "Firm-specific advantages, entry modes, and performance of Japanese FDI in Thailand," Japan and the World Economy, Elsevier, vol. 12(1), pages 33-48, January.
    27. Keith D. Brouthers & Lance Eliot Brouthers, 2003. "Why Service and Manufacturing Entry Mode Choices Differ: The Influence of Transaction Cost Factors, Risk and Trust," Journal of Management Studies, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 40(5), pages 1179-1204, July.
    28. Piero Morosini & Scott Shane & Harbir Singh, 1998. "National Cultural Distance and Cross-Border Acquisition Performance," Journal of International Business Studies, Palgrave Macmillan;Academy of International Business, vol. 29(1), pages 137-158, March.
    29. Kumar, V. & Subramanian, Velavan, 1997. "A contingency framework for the mode of entry decision," Journal of World Business, Elsevier, vol. 32(1), pages 53-72, April.
    30. John H Dunning, 1995. "Reappraising the Eclectic Paradigm in an Age of Alliance Capitalism," Journal of International Business Studies, Palgrave Macmillan;Academy of International Business, vol. 26(3), pages 461-491, September.
    31. W. J. Henisz, 2000. "The Institutional Environment for Economic Growth," Economics and Politics, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 12(1), pages 1-31, March.
    32. Baek, H. Young & Kwok, Chuck C. Y., 2002. "Foreign exchange rates and the corporate choice of foreign entry mode," International Review of Economics & Finance, Elsevier, vol. 11(2), pages 207-227, May.
    33. Chen, Shih-Fen S. & Hennart, Jean-Francois, 2004. "A hostage theory of joint ventures: why do Japanese investors choose partial over full acquisitions to enter the United States?," Journal of Business Research, Elsevier, vol. 57(10), pages 1126-1134, October.
    34. Klaus E. Meyer & Saul Estrin & Sumon Kumar Bhaumik & Mike W. Peng, 2009. "Institutions, resources, and entry strategies in emerging economies," Strategic Management Journal, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 30(1), pages 61-80, January.
    35. Cristina López-Duarte & Marta Vidal-Suárez, 2008. "Foreign direct investment through partial acquisitions: hostage effect or conflicts enhancement," Journal of Management & Governance, Springer;Accademia Italiana di Economia Aziendale (AIDEA), vol. 12(3), pages 287-308, August.
    36. Majocchi, Antonio & Bacchiocchi, Emanuele & Mayrhofer, Ulrike, 2005. "Firm size, business experience and export intensity in SMEs: A longitudinal approach to complex relationships," International Business Review, Elsevier, vol. 14(6), pages 719-738, December.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Anne-Wil Harzing & Markus Pudelko, 2016. "Do We Need to Distance Ourselves from the Distance Concept? Why Home and Host Country Context Might Matter More Than (Cultural) Distance," Management International Review, Springer, vol. 56(1), pages 1-34, February.

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Morschett, Dirk & Schramm-Klein, Hanna & Swoboda, Bernhard, 2010. "Decades of research on market entry modes: What do we really know about external antecedents of entry mode choice?," Journal of International Management, Elsevier, vol. 16(1), pages 60-77, March.
    2. Canabal, Anne & White III, George O., 2008. "Entry mode research: Past and future," International Business Review, Elsevier, vol. 17(3), pages 267-284, June.
    3. Zdolsek, Daniel & Kolar, Iztok, 2013. "Management disclosure practices for disaggregated (financial) information in Slovenian unlisted companies," Journal of East European Management Studies, Nomos Verlagsgesellschaft mbH & Co. KG, vol. 18(2), pages 232-263.
    4. Mehmet Demirbag & Ekrem Tatoglu & Keith W. Glaister, 2010. "Institutional and Transaction Cost Influences on Partnership Structure of Foreign Affiliates," Management International Review, Springer, vol. 50(6), pages 709-745, December.
    5. Surdu, Irina & Mellahi, Kamel, 2016. "Theoretical foundations of equity based foreign market entry decisions: A review of the literature and recommendations for future research," International Business Review, Elsevier, vol. 25(5), pages 1169-1184.
    6. Slangen, Arjen H.L. & van Tulder, Rob J.M., 2009. "Cultural distance, political risk, or governance quality? Towards a more accurate conceptualization and measurement of external uncertainty in foreign entry mode research," International Business Review, Elsevier, vol. 18(3), pages 276-291, June.
    7. Larimo, Jorma & Arslan, Ahmad, 2013. "Determinants of foreign direct investment ownership mode choice: Evidence from Nordic investments in Central and Eastern Europe," Journal of East European Management Studies, Nomos Verlagsgesellschaft mbH & Co. KG, vol. 18(2), pages 232-263.
    8. Reinhold Decker & Xuemin Zhao, 2004. "SMEs' Choice of Foreign Market Entry Mode: A Normative Approach," International Journal of Business and Economics, School of Management Development, Feng Chia University, Taichung, Taiwan, vol. 3(3), pages 181-200, December.
    9. Wrona, Thomas & Trąpczyński, Piotr, 2012. "Re-explaining international entry modes – Interaction and moderating effects on entry modes of pharmaceutical companies into transition economies," European Management Journal, Elsevier, vol. 30(4), pages 295-315.
    10. Keith D. Brouthers & Liang Chen & Sali Li & Noman Shaheer, 2022. "Charting new courses to enter foreign markets: Conceptualization, theoretical framework, and research directions on non-traditional entry modes," Journal of International Business Studies, Palgrave Macmillan;Academy of International Business, vol. 53(9), pages 2088-2115, December.
    11. Javalgi, Rajshekhar (Raj) G. & Deligonul, Seyda & Ghosh, Amit K. & Lambert, Douglas M. & Cavusgil, S. Tamer, 2010. "Foreign market entry mode behavior as a gateway to further entries: The NAFTA experience," International Business Review, Elsevier, vol. 19(3), pages 209-222, June.
    12. Erdener Kaynak & Mehmet Demirbag & Ekrem Tatoglu, 2007. "Determinants of ownership-based entry mode choice of MNEs: Evidence from Mongolia," Management International Review, Springer, vol. 47(4), pages 505-530, October.
    13. Cuypers, I.R.P., 2009. "Essays on equity joint ventures, uncertainty and experience," Other publications TiSEM 8dc79e86-c625-467f-a450-8, Tilburg University, School of Economics and Management.
    14. Nielsen, Bo Bernhard & Nielsen, Sabina, 2011. "The role of top management team international orientation in international strategic decision-making: The choice of foreign entry mode," Journal of World Business, Elsevier, vol. 46(2), pages 185-193, April.
    15. Paloma Almodóvar & José Emilio Navas López & Patricia Huerta Riveros, 2009. "La tipología estratégica como factor determinante de la empresa conjunta internacional," Investigaciones Economicas, Fundación SEPI, vol. 33(3), pages 407-438, September.
    16. Jonas Puck & Markus K. Hödl & Igor Filatotchev & Hans-Georg Wolff & Benjamin Bader, 2016. "Ownership mode, cultural distance, and the extent of parent firms’ strategic control over subsidiaries in the PRC," Asia Pacific Journal of Management, Springer, vol. 33(4), pages 1075-1105, December.
    17. Chen, Ming-Yuan & Chang, Jing-Yun, 2011. "The choice of foreign market entry mode: An analysis of the dynamic probit model," Economic Modelling, Elsevier, vol. 28(1), pages 439-450.
    18. Kedia, Ben L. & Bilgili, Tsvetomira V., 2015. "When history matters: The effect of historical ties on the relationship between institutional distance and shares acquired," International Business Review, Elsevier, vol. 24(6), pages 921-934.
    19. Quer, Diego & Claver, Enrique & Andreu, Rosario, 2007. "Foreign market entry mode in the hotel industry: The impact of country- and firm-specific factors," International Business Review, Elsevier, vol. 16(3), pages 362-376, June.
    20. Liedong, Tahiru Azaaviele & Peprah, Augustine Awuah & Amartey, Abednego Okoe & Rajwani, Tazeeb, 2020. "Institutional voids and firms' resource commitment in emerging markets: A review and future research agenda," Journal of International Management, Elsevier, vol. 26(3).

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:hal:journl:halshs-00690216. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: CCSD (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/ .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.