Je Moeder Is Een Hoer
Nokia Mobile Phones & the Chinese Market – Managing Culturally Based Strategic Nets
Jan-Åke Törnroos Åbo Akademi University Department of Business Administration Henriksgatan 7, FIN-20500 Åbo, Finland. Phone +358-2-2153266, Fax: +358-2-2154806 jtornroo@abo.fi
Abstract In the new global world economy the telecom sector has a central role to play. In the virtualised marketplace Mobile Phones have since the mid-1990s had a tremendous growth curve and spread across the global Triad. The emergence of technological innovations and growth started in Northern Europe, the U.S and Japan and has thereafter spread to many other parts of the world. Core technologies and R&D functions are spreading to new locations as the firms in the lead (Nokia, Motorola, Samsung, SonyEricsson and Siemens) have developed global sourcing and production systems. The markets for final products and services are global as well. China is one of the new key markets for growth when the first-mover markets have reached a more saturated stage. Due to China’s policy concerning FDI and the opening up of its’ markets for foreign products China is now (together with its impressive growth figures) an interesting area for FDI for Mobile Phone producers. This paper looks at how Nokia Mobile Phones has penetrated the Chinese market and how it has developed its position in the growing market through FDI and other investments. The study focuses on which investments have been made so far and what are undergoing development at present through a strategic network perspective. This paper forms a part of the VALUENET research project funded by the Finnish Research Foundation. Key words: Mobile phone markets, Nokia, China, Foreign direct investment, Globalization, Business networks
INTRODUCTION Mobile phone business has come to a new developmental trend in today’s global market. The market shows a sign of a first mature phase when the spectacular growth figures from the mid1990s to 2000 has come to a halt
Jan-Åke Törnroos Åbo Akademi University Department of Business Administration Henriksgatan 7, FIN-20500 Åbo, Finland. Phone +358-2-2153266, Fax: +358-2-2154806 jtornroo@abo.fi
Abstract In the new global world economy the telecom sector has a central role to play. In the virtualised marketplace Mobile Phones have since the mid-1990s had a tremendous growth curve and spread across the global Triad. The emergence of technological innovations and growth started in Northern Europe, the U.S and Japan and has thereafter spread to many other parts of the world. Core technologies and R&D functions are spreading to new locations as the firms in the lead (Nokia, Motorola, Samsung, SonyEricsson and Siemens) have developed global sourcing and production systems. The markets for final products and services are global as well. China is one of the new key markets for growth when the first-mover markets have reached a more saturated stage. Due to China’s policy concerning FDI and the opening up of its’ markets for foreign products China is now (together with its impressive growth figures) an interesting area for FDI for Mobile Phone producers. This paper looks at how Nokia Mobile Phones has penetrated the Chinese market and how it has developed its position in the growing market through FDI and other investments. The study focuses on which investments have been made so far and what are undergoing development at present through a strategic network perspective. This paper forms a part of the VALUENET research project funded by the Finnish Research Foundation. Key words: Mobile phone markets, Nokia, China, Foreign direct investment, Globalization, Business networks
INTRODUCTION Mobile phone business has come to a new developmental trend in today’s global market. The market shows a sign of a first mature phase when the spectacular growth figures from the mid1990s to 2000 has come to a halt