The internationalization of digital services in b2c markets: Branding or country of origin effect?

Abstract

Though the increasing trend towards globalisation presents enormous opportunities for international market expansion, it has been acknowledged that the success of an internationalisation strategy depends, among various other factors, upon having a good understanding of the attitudes that consumers from different countries have towards foreign products or services. Previous research focused on the perception of digital formats for final consumers, and its influence on supply chain approaches. However, there is not a clear understanding about the internationalization patterns of digital services yet. The present research aims to shed light on this gap by building upon existing international business and marketing literatures constructs such as country-of-origin (COO) effect and cultural distance. We hypothesize that these variables are as important as the brand of the digital service provider in influencing consumers’ purchasing decisions.