Online service providers (OSPs) are becoming increasingly important in the global economy and are undertaking internationalization at a remarkable speed. Since they depend on digital delivery over the internet, OSPs are portrayed as footloose in their geographical expansion and are often described as Bborn global.^However, on the basis of three case studies, the paper reveals the importance of the home market as a springboard, and of regional expansion in the early phase of internationalization. The paper emphasizes the balance in the internationalization process between an online and an offline presence in the new international market. The time gap between online and offline presence, the online-to-offline interval, seems to be a critical factor in the internationalization process. The speed of the internet industry and the technically complex nature of online services could explain why the case firms chose controlled modes of entry. The case firms thus skip sequential steps, following a pattern that is in contrast to the Uppsala model. Overall, the paper suggests that finding the right balance between the online and the offline presence is a challenge in the internationalization of these particular Swedish OSP firms.Résumé Les online service providers (OSPs) autrement dit les entreprises qui offrent des services par internet, prennent de plus en plus d'importance dans l'économie globale et connaissent une internationalisation remarquablement rapide. Dépendants de la livraison numérique via internet, les OSPs sont considérés comme bénéficiant d'une expansion géographique sans entrave et sont souvent décrits comme Bborn global^. Pourtant, basé sur trois études de cas, l'article révèle l'importance du tremplin que représente le marché d'origine, suivi par l'expansion régionale dans la première phase d'internationalisation. L'article met l'accent sur l'équilibre, entre la présence en ligne et hors ligne, dans le processus d'internationalisation. L'à-propos dans le passage J Int Entrep du hors ligne au en ligne, c'est à dire l'intervalle entre l'existence en ligne et l'existence hors ligne, parait être un facteur déterminant dans le processus d'internationalisation. La vitesse de l'industrie internet, et la nature complexe des services en ligne pourraient expliquer pourquoi les entreprises étudiées ont choisi des modes d'entrée contrôlés. Ces entreprises ont cependant sautés certaines étapes séquentielles, ce qui constitue un modèle contrastant avec le modèle d'Uppsala. Globalement, l'article suggère que trouver la bonne mesure entre présence en ligne et hors ligne est un défi pour l'internationalisation des OSPs suédois présentés. Summary HighlightsContributions: This timely study sheds light on the internationalization process for online service providers (OSPs). Its contribution includes three case studies of some of the best-known Swedish OSPs, and it introduces new theoretical concepts and a spatial interpretation of the internationalization process. The spatial online-offline balance offers a new way of thinki...

Purpose Using the lens of Uber’s digital workers in Paris, the purpose of this paper is to investigate how the trust-building mechanism is constructed between a digital platform and its digital workers in a foreign market entry. Design/methodology/approach This is a case study based on empirical data from in-depth interviews with 35 Uber drivers. A cross-disciplinary literature framework from mainly international business and internet geography theory and a reflexive qualitative methodology are applied. Findings Results show that the relationship between the digital platform and the digital workers is characterized by mistrust and suffers from decreasing commitment levels soon after market entry. Uber mitigates its mistrust via control and scarce mechanisms. The digital drivers’ “illusionary freedom”, a state in which they feel they can log on and log off at any time, enables the digital platform to gradually lower its commitment. The authors find that the mistrust does not seem to hamper the digital platform’s business performance. Research limitations/implications The paper mainly covers the digital workers’ perspective and the case of Uber’s market entry in Paris. Social implications This paper implies that digitally conveyed control seems to come at the cost of lowered human trust. Given the pace at which digital control systems are permeating society, this could eventually lower the whole societal trust level. Originality/value The authors criticize incumbent international business theory for not being sufficiently able to explain a contemporary digital business logic and the authors challenge the general assumption that successful internationalization is built through trust. The authors contribute with the conceptualization of a new technical market entry mode for digital platforms – “digitally controlled proxies”.

Purpose This paper aims to examine the de-internationalization process to determine how different forms of attitudinal commitment influence the de-internationalization process. Design/methodology/approach Because of the exploratory nature of the study, a case study design is used. Two cases of Swedish companies, which de-internationalize from the French market, are studied. Findings Different commitment profiles influence the de-internationalization process. In particular, a general commitment profile, in which affective, normative, instrumental and continuance commitment play a role, influences the timing of de-internationalization, while the effort directed toward the execution of de-internationalization is mainly influenced by normative commitment and the extent of de-internationalization mainly by instrumental commitment. Research limitations/implications By offering three propositions regarding the four types of commitment and the effects of these commitment types on the process of de-internationalization, the authors contribute to the literature on de-internationalization and the commitment literature. Practical implications The findings suggest that there is a risk that managers continue to commit resources to a market for a longer period without clear benefits because of affective and continuance commitment. As local employees persist in committing to the local market because of continuance commitment, offering viable alternatives reduces commitment to the foreign operations. Originality/value Distinguishing between different types of commitment, the paper builds on a more fine-grained typology of commitment than previous internationalization literature. Thereby, the paper opens up for new insights in the de-internationalization process.

The last decade has seen a rapid growth of Internet access across Africa, although it has not been evenly distributed. It is therefore important for policymakers to ask how policy can bridge this inequality of Internet access. This article addresses the dearth of research assessing the interplay between policy and Internet penetration by identifying Internet penetration‐related policy variables and institutional constructs in Sub‐Saharan Africa. Based on a literature review and data availability, four variables are suggested: (i) free flow of information; (ii) market concentration; (iii) the activity level of the Universal Service Fund (USF); and (iv) total tax on computer equipment. The results show that only the activity level of the USF and low total tax on computer equipment are significantly positively related to Internet penetration in Sub‐Saharan Africa. Free flow of information and market concentration do not show any impact on Internet penetration. The latter could be attributed to underdeveloped competition in most Sub‐Saharan countries. We recommend that policymakers promote the policy instrument of Universal Service and USF and consider substituting tax on computer equipment with other tax revenues, and not to blindly trust the market's invisible hand to fix inequality in Internet diffusion.

Despite the growing rates of Internet penetration and inflows of returnee entrepreneurs (REs) from Silicon Valley, there are still few examples of successful digital entrepreneurship ventures from emerging markets reaching international markets. Positioning itself at the intersection of returnee entrepreneurship, digital entrepreneurship and internationalization, this article is based on the case studies of the REs starting up digital ventures in Morocco. The results show that Moroccan digital entrepreneurship is driven by well-educated REs with working experience from the United States and Europe. These entrepreneurs play a dominant role in fostering the local digital entrepreneurship scene, and they have an international ambition in their ventures from the outset. The dominance of the REs also reveals vulnerability in the local digital ecosystem—reluctance of the indigenous business community to engage in the digital sector and a lack of domestic investors, programmers and start-up clusters. However, Moroccan digital start-ups struggle with the fierce competition among the global Internet firms, which benefit from an underdeveloped policy framework. This article contributes new insights to the complexity of the returnee and digital entrepreneurship and demonstrates the pivotal role of Moroccan REs in the country’s trajectory towards closing the extant digital entrepreneurship gap vis-à-vis developed markets.