Determinants of the Internationalization of Born-Digital Firms

Heejung Choi ․ Eunmi Lee ․ Young-Ryeol Park

Abstract

The primary goal of this research is to identify determinants of the internationalization of born-digital firms. A born-digital firm refers to the firm which relies on the internet for its business management and business process since the birth of the firm. By drawing on the knowledge-based view and resource-based view, this research is expected to expand the realm of the subject matters of international business studies to the extent of born-digital firms. We hypothesized that a born-digital firm’s technology type and patent are positively associated with internationalization. We further posited that capital financing as the financial slack moderates the relationships. With the sample of 440 Korean born-digital startups, different variables’ effect on the firm’s internationalization matter is tested and analyzed. Our results showed that the born-digital firm’s patent is positively associated with internationalization whereas technology type is not significant. Yet, capital financing strengthens the relationship between technology type and patent and internationalization. Our results have key theoretical implications that technology capability enables born-digital firms’ internalization and capital financing may be a salient facilitator in driving the internationalization of born-digital firms.

Keywords

Born digital․internationalization․knowledge-based theory․technology capability ․capital financing

2.Heejung Choi Eunmi Lee Young-Ryeol Park