The objective of Julia Christofors thesis is to analyze and explain the propensity of firms and their respective entrepreneurs to internationalize. The focus of this thesis is primarily on firms with information-technology-based business models, i.e. Electronic-Business-Firms, which create value via digital networks. Such firms are often referred to as Born Globals. It can therefore be assumed that on the basis of the distinct characteristics of the world wide web and because the market participants are globally interconnected via digital networks, these newly founded firms are more likely to internationalize early in their life cycle. Furthermore, because there have been fundamental changes in the technological, economic and societal spheres, the internationalization process and the propensity of these firms to offer their products on international markets may not necessarily be explained with the help of classical theories of internationalization. At the same time, the management of the newly founded E-Business firms, which are active in and pressured to thrive in a global competitive environment, are confronted with completely new challenges. The theoretical foundations presented from the academic internationalization literature stream only go some way to explaining the internationalization behavior of young E-Business-firms. This is especially due to the fact that these approaches basically relate to international, multinational and established firms.

Dr. Julia Christofor promovierte bei Prof. Dr. Tobias Kollmann am Lehrstuhl für E-Business und E-Entrepreneurship an der Universität Duisburg-Essen, Campus Essen. Sie ist als Business Consultant bei der Hewlett-Packard GmbH in Ratingen tätig.

Theoretical Foundations of Firm Internationalization.- Theoretical Foundations of Entrepreneurship.- Literature Synopsis and Research Framework.- Empirical Study: Internationalization Propensity in the Net Economy.- Data Analysis of the Empirical Study.- Description of Cluster Solution Findings.- Conclusion.