ABSTRACT
This chapter focuses on the relationship between industry deregulation and the internationalisation strategies of former monopolists with the main empirical focus being on the internationalisation strategies in the mobile sector. It provides the general analysis of the changing patterns of internationalisation in former incumbent companies with special emphasis on the telecommunications sector. The deregulated telecommunications have a drive for internationalisation primarily because of the realisation that competition would be introduced in their domestic markets. Before entering into a more detailed study of the process of internationalisation of the European telecommunications incumbents in the 1990s, it is necessary to review the theories behind firm internationalisation in general. Transnational strategies incorporate both global and local dimensions by approaching the organisation as an integrated network, thereby placing less emphasis on dyadic headquarter-subsidiary relationships. The funding available and the willingness to continue a rapid international expansion were substantially reduced after the company was partly privatised in 2001.
