Cross-border alliance matching platform for the high-tech industry in Asia
Date Issued
2015
Date
2015
Author(s)
Misawa, Katsuhiko
Abstract
This thesis proposes a feasible and sustainable business model that will facilitate cross-border alliances among high-tech companies in Asia. On this platform, users can exchange information regarding their technologies, services and other capabilities that they possess. The service provided by this platform is not only company information-related. We will also offer business consulting services that take a hands-on approach to forming synergic alliances. By way of analogy, new technologies can be compared to the cooking of food. Startup companies often do not have access to all the expertise that could help them to cook their fresh ingredients correctly the first time. Ideally, the ingredients would be combined together using the right timing and technique to bring out their full flavor. Our role as a consulting service will be to provide businesses with the right tools to allow them to become good chefs that will be able to utilize their resources at their highest potential. Our target users will be companies, universities, and investors. The primary target will be large corporations that want to co-develop or acquire new core technologies in collaboration with dynamic startup ventures. These technologies can then be further developed into new products for local or global markets. This business model will also be a potent tool to realize the idea of “open innovation.” One benefit of cross-border alliances is the complementary relationships that they create between partners. When companies enter foreign markets, they have difficulties competing based on the strength of their core competencies alone. Therefore, they need to minimize their weaknesses in the target market. The most effective way to do this, and to enter a foreign market successfully, is to make a strategic alliance with a local partner. Large corporations already have experience utilizing cross-border alliances to some extent. In contrast, ventures and small companies do not have enough resources to invest in building these alliances. This business model offers more opportunities for such companies to expand into foreign markets in order to grow and survive in a competitive global economy. Another reason to focus on cross-border alliances is that there are only a handful of companies which have capabilities and resources for successfully managing these strategic alliances, especially in the technology sector. This is because there are significant hurdles to overcome, such as the difference in business cultures and language, when building a robust cross-border alliance. This business model seeks to facilitate the flow of information, resources, and capital needed to overcome the barriers of entry found in different Asian countries.
Subjects
Cross-border alliance
Open Innovation
Freemium
Multi-sided platform
Type
thesis