Purpose
Although there have been many discussions on the status and development of original equipment manufacturers (OEMs), theory on how they survive is minimal. Little is known about how OEMs survive and upgrade to other business models, such as original design manufacturers (ODMs) and original brand manufacturers (OBMs), in emerging economies. The purpose of this paper is to extend the theory on the survival path of OEMs from the perspective of emerging countries by examining how OEMs survive cost pressures and upgrade to ODMs or OBMs.
Design/methodology/approach
Using a multi-case study method, this study analyzes the survival path employed by OEMs by examining eight firms in the Chinese toy industry.
Findings
This study shows that OEMs remain weak in the global toy industry chain due to labor costs. While some OEMs move to low-cost regions, others turn to OBM management, after transitioning through an ODM model, by investing in research and development and marketing.
Originality/value
This study explores the survival paths of OEM enterprises, showing that OEMs can first upgrade to ODMs and then to OBMs, or they can directly upgrade to OBMs. Shifting from OEM to ODM is an important step in the transition process, although the contract that OEMs have with their foreign partners does not change significantly.
Previous research in regional energy efficiency by using macro statistical data has demonstrated that technology development could improve regional energy efficiency. Since the start of reform and opening up in 1978, China has mainly adopted energy import and foreign direct investment to promote economic growth. At the same time, the country has also increased the input of technology and R&D to prompt technological reformation and imported technology absorption. However, there is limited research on the relationship between technology development and energy efficiency. Using the grounded theory method, the authors of this paper study the relationship between technology input-output and energy utilization efficiency in Shanghai over the past 30 years. They conclude that although the tactics of technology import and foreign direct investment can improve energy efficiency in the initial stages of modern industrialization, they cannot improve it continuously. In the more advanced stages of modern industrialization, the improvement of energy efficiency relies not only on increased R&D investment but also on R&D investment structure optimization and independent technological innovation.
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