Organizational Choices and Venturing Modes: An Analysis of Corporate Venture Capital Activities in Legacy Media

Abstract

Traditional media companies increasingly search for know-how and novel input outside their own networks to keep up with the rapidly changing environment. As an instrument to explore and exploit new business opportunities, corporate venture capital (CVC) has become particularly important. However, there is little research on the CVC investments by legacy media companies, despite these having been responsible for some of the largest investments in past years. To lay a foundation for research in this field, we investigate how traditional media companies organize their CVC activities. Using an extensive analysis of the 90 largest legacy media companies in Germany, the United Kingdom, and the United States, we explore the organizational structure, investment objectives, investment focus, and industry related- ness of investments. Our findings show the majority of investments are conducted through different forms of direct investments, predominantly focusing on strategic goals and using both exploration and exploitation. Moreover, we identify a trend toward investments in content- and commerce-related fields.