A motivation-based typology of media companies’ cross-border engagement

Abstract

This article contributes to theoretical discussions in the field of transnational media management research. We argue that investigating media companies’ activities abroad from a strategy-as-practice perspective can overcome shortcomings implied in research predominantly focusing on strategies applied by entire companies. This is especially valid in times of digitization where changing technological frameworks force media companies to internationalize and restructure their business models. Based on a comparative qualitative analysis of interviews with 34 international senior media managers, this article provides a typology of cross-border activities related to three types of motivations: economic, organizational and socio-political. Relating activities and motivations provides a useful heuristic to systematically compare activities of most diverse media companies beyond objectives such as profit and growth. This sheds light on processes of digitization as related to numerous emerging organizational activities abroad with yet unclear economic trade-offs.