Valuation of Patent-Based Collaborative Synergies under Strategic Settings with Multiple Uncertainties: Rainbow Real Options Approach

Abstract

Recent years have seen increasing initiatives involving more applications of real options to value the strategizing process. These initiatives, referred to as Real Option Theory (ROT), imply greater inclusiveness of simple and advanced real options in strategizing processes. While substantial theoretical groundwork on ROT has been laid in corporate finance, and both qualitative and quantitative studies on ROT in business management journals are appearing on an increasing basis, there remain significant opportunities for more research on strategic synergism in patent-based acquisitions. In this vein, the current paper aims to explore a rainbow real options application (real options that are exposed to two sources of uncertainty) to measure patent-based collaborative synergies in high-tech mergers and acquisitions. Having conducted the deviant case study of ZOOX start-up’s acquisition by Amazon.com in 2020, this paper justifies the proposition of the employability of rainbow real options for the valuation of network and relational synergies in highly risky patent-based acquisitions with multiple uncertainties.