Internationalization Patterns of European Mobile Network Operators

Abstract

The mobile communication industry is one of the most important industries, because it contributes almost five percent to the global GDP and provides the platform for most technological innovations like internet of things (IoT) or digitalization. The purpose of this qualitative, multiple-case study is to explore the internationalization patterns of the four major European mobile network operators (MNO) Deutsche Telekom, Orange, Vodafone, and Telefonica using the Uppsala Internationalization Process Model (UIPM) and the cultural, administrative, geographical, and economic distance (CAGE) distance framework as conceptual frameworks. The findings suggest that European MNOs opt for an active market entry strategy while using a “buy” market entry form to benefit from business opportunities in foreign markets with a high administrative and political proximity and identified government ownership as an impact factor on the speed of internationalization. These findings confirm and add to the current research about MNO’s internationalization patterns and offer important insights for practitioners. There is a need for additional research with other case study firms to replicate the research findings and quantitative methods to strengthen their generalizability.