ABSTRACT
Recognizing the importance of external knowledge flows is fundamental in sectors characterized by dynamic information and strong intellectual property rights (Chesbrough, 2003). Consequently, firms have progressively forsaken the idea that new knowledge has to be generated through internal processes (Arora et al., 2001; Gans and Stern, 2003) and have begun considering external knowledge appropriation. From this perspective, strategic alliances and mergers and acquisitions (M&As) are alternative organizational forms that, besides being renowned for their ability to promote entry into new markets and their effectiveness to achieve economies of scale and scope, have progressively become efficient means to access and assimilate knowledge from other organizations (De Man and Duysters, 2005).
