The Success Factors of Korean Global Start-Ups in the Digital Sectors Through Internationalization

With the growing importance of start-ups in building a sustainable national economy, both the Korean government and scholars are demonstrating growing interest in strengthening the competitiveness of start-ups. The Korean government has promoted a number of initiatives, but there are also a growing number of critics who argue that government regulations are obstacles to the efficient operation of start-ups and their competitiveness enhancement. Many of the preceding studies on Korean start-ups have emphasized the critical factors of survival and growth, including entrepreneurship, innovation, and technology. However, these factors do not guarantee market success. In addition to technological capabilities, a good set of strategies are needed. This paper investigates how Korean global start-ups scale-up their businesses and gain success through global strategy. Specifically, this paper adopts the ABCD model and global value chain strategy to analyze the success factors of fast-growing Korean start-ups that operate in the ASEAN digital sectors. This paper argues that the growth of Korean digital start-ups through internationalization has not been directly accelerated by government support but rather to avoid government regulations. Moreover, the four strategic factors of the ABCD model facilitated their entry and success in the ASEAN market by developing a cooperative relationship with local firms for efficient operations on a cross-border network.