Management of International Business - China Mobile Limited - Essay Example

? EXECUTIVE SUMMARY China Mobile Limited (CHL), the world’s largest mobile operator, plans to expand into the European markets. However, this requires understanding the EU telecom regulation. This report investigates the business environment in Belgium, the telecom regulations as stipulated by the EU and the company resources. Belgium does not discriminate between the domestic and foreign companies and there are no restrictions on investment and ownership. CHL is financially stable and has sustainable growth. However it has limited experience in overseas market and is culturally dissimilar to Belgium. Nevertheless, its home country government encourages expansion and the host country business environment is conducive to FDI. The repost that suggests the CHL should enter Belgium through acquisition of majority stake in an existing mobile network operator’s business. Based on the Uppsala Model, once it has gained knowledge and expertise on the local market, CHL can expand its network and make further investments. Table of Contents 1. Introduction 1 2. Belgium 1 3. The European Union 4 4. China Mobile Limited 6 5. Telecom Sector Analysis 9 6. Mode of Entry Analysis 11 7. Conclusion 15 References 16 1. Introduction China Mobile Limited, world’s largest mobile operator, intends expanding overseas into the European markets. It intends to enter the Belgian market which is under the European Union. This report evaluates the telecom sector in Belgium apart from the business environment in Belgium and then suggests the mode of entry. 2. Belgium Belgium has always been a prosperous market place and is located at the crossroads of Latin, Germanic and Anglo-Saxon influences (Belgian Federal Government, 2011). This is a small country but it has highly competitive industry and service sector, and is well integrated into the globalized world. According to the KOF index Belgium is the most globalized county in the world. The nation also occupies the sixth position on the list of the countries that attract foreign investments, as per the Ernst & Young European Investment Monitor, 2011. 2.1 Political Environment The Belgium state has evolved from a highly centralized structure to a federal system in which many regions have been granted autonomy for many policy areas (Rynck, 2005). Each region is responsible for its own economic development, housing, environment and transport. In Belgium there is no hierarchy between regional and national laws. Political risk in Belgium is very low in Belgium, according to AMB Country Risk Report (2012). 2.2 Economic Environment The country was affected severely by the recent global recession. Countries that have so far been investing in Belgium are the United States, the United Kingdom, France, Germany and the Netherlands (Belgian Federal Government, 2011). Investments are mostly in sales and marketing sectors followed by industries and the logistics sectors. The business environment in Belgium is conducive to investments as there is no distinction between foreign and domestic companies. There are no restrictions either on foreign investments or income repatriation. In addition, foreign companies, subsidiaries or branches have the same privileges, and enjoy the same incentives as domestic companies while they also have the same legal obligations (UHY, 2011). Because of the locational advantages Belgium has become a highly developed transit and distribution centre for several other countries in the European market. The banking system is under the control of the Belgian National Bank, which is responsible for all monetary and financial operations in the country. Venture capital is also available to young and dynamic entrepreneurs (UHY, 2011). Belgium has a well-developed economy and all the economic sectors are well represented. However, it imports almost all raw materials but exports from the country are primarily comprised of machinery and transport equipment, food products, chemicals and metals. The two main regions in Belgium are Flemish and Walloons but the unemployment pattern in these two regions differs. The unemployment rate in Walloons is twice as high as in Flemish because Walloons has more of declining industries such as steel which have been hit by recession (Toulemonde, 2001). However, during recession, the unemployment rate in both the regions is the same. Overall, Fleming provinces are performing better than Walloons and Walloons provinces are performing better than Brussels. The workforce is multilingual, skilled, motivated and very productive (UHY, 2011). As a result the rate of absenteeism is very low in the country. 2.3 Socio-cultural Environment The living environment for foreign investors is comfortable, with private international schools and clubs. Being a multilingual state, the nation offers facilities to people from all regions. The three official languages used are Dutch, German and French. Apart from these languages, English is widely spoken by most nationals (UHY, 2011). In Belgium two cultures converge – Latin and Germanic and hence it has an open-minded position throughout the Continent. 2.4 Employment conditions The government offers substantial incentives to companies generating employment. They are generally managed by regional authorities and the aid consists in the form of reduction of social security costs (UHY, 2011). The companies can obtain reduction for hiring of the first employee, for hiring an unemployed, for hiring an additional employee or replacing an employee. Firms also receive incentives for providing training to their employees either in-house or at any recognized training centre. 2.5 Infrastructure Belgium has a well-developed and modern motorway system and the highways are well lit and developed (UHY, 2011). The railway system in Belgium is one of the most concentrated in the world. A range of intra-European and international flights are available to and from the country. Belgium also has a well-developed inland water system as it has the second largest seaport in Europe. 2.6 China-Belgium Trade Relations With the accession of China into WTO in 2001, the Chinese companies now have access to foreign markets because of low operation costs and greater international pressure to restructure the Chinese companies to enhance competitiveness and efficiency. The Chinese economy has opened up as it has accepted international norms and integrated its economy with the rest of the world. In the mobile telephony sector, China has reached an agreement with EU under which the Chinese companies can resell their leasing capacity for both international and domestic traffic (Kim, 2004). In 2010, the relationship between the People’s Republic of China and Belgium has progressed and the leaders of the two nations signed cooperation documents among which telecommunication was one such field (FMPRC, 2011). Economic and trade cooperation ties have been made between the two countries. Thus, the country has predictable and transparent legal environment and business infrastructure; it has sophisticated financial system regulation with deep capital markets. The economic, political and financial risk in investing in the country is extremely low. Educated, skilled, motivated labour is available and FDI in Belgium is attractive. Barriers to market entry are low. Interestingly, Belgium is the founding member of the European Union, OECD and WTO and also hosts the EU headquarters (Belgian Federal Government, 2011). 3. The European Union The European Union (EU) is an economic and political partnership created between 27 European to foster economic cooperation as they were economically interdependent (Europa, n.d.). The EU works towards peace, prosperity and stability; it works towards raising the living standards not only of its member states but also of the nations that have trade association with its member states. It has also launched a single European currency. One of the main aims of the EU is to promote human rights around the world as its core values include human dignity, freedom, democracy equality and rule of law. The EU is now considered a single market and accordingly all the members of the EU have granted policy-making authority to the supranational level and hence EU is a single actor in international trade negotiations (Meunier, 2007). The single negotiating position of the EU represents the preferences of the member states. In fact the expansion of the EU was also aimed at broadening the free trade area to create a larger single market so that members could benefit from economies of scale (Papazoglou, Pentecost and Marques, 2006). The new transition accession economies that joined the EU later saw rise in exports as they became integrated in the world economy and as trade barriers were removed. The EU has trade relations with several countries but an important characteristic of the EU trade policy includes preferences granted to developing countries (Ketenci and Uz, 2011). The EU trade policy has a commitment to multilateralism. Different tariff regimes also coexist along with a limited number of trade concessions. The trade concessions are under agreements with different countries. The EU takes an active role in the WTO’s multilateral negotiations and bilateral agreements. The EU devises specific trading policies with third countries and this strategy ensures that the European economy is open to the world and is competitive. The EU supports exports from developing countries due to the size of its market and due to the preferential trade arrangements such as Generalized System of Preferences (GSP), the Lome? Convention and Cotonou Agreement (Muhammad, Amponsah and Dennis, 2010). Products from developing countries not only have preferential access to the EU member nations but the EU also grants non-reciprocal tariff concessions to imports from certain developing countries that discharge social responsibility such as discouraging child/forced labour, following environmental regulation and fighting against drug production and trade. In the age of globalization many nations tend to lower the standards to stimulate national competitiveness. However, by acting collectively, the EU member states, have been able to exert pressure to leverage standards upwards even in the United States (Shaffer, 1999). The Directive for data protection by EU became effective in 1998 which was resented by the United States. However, as the EU law interacted with US practice and international trade rules, the WTO law provided the EU with a shield against US retaliatory threats. This directive by EU facilitated a trading up of data privacy standards. This has helped all the member states to expand their markets as their collective bargaining power increased. Thus EU could also evaluate and remove the trade and tariff barriers on clothing imports and as the quota system was phased out, there was a significant effect on imports (Baleix, 2005). This clearly indicates that presence of quotas act as disincentive to produce and export, whereas suppression of quotas leads to large increase in EU imports. This policy benefited even the European producers as they too had been negatively impacted. Apart for formulating and revising policies for the member states, EU also supports the developing and emerging economies in various ways. For instance, it supported the project for improvement of transport infrastructure in Kenya, as it helped the government to build and rehabilitate rural roads (Europa, 2012). This project also helped create jobs. To enhance the competitiveness and induce exports from Kenya, the EU is helping the nation to improve standards and regulations, in addition to training the authorities. This initiative of EU will help improve the lives and standards of many Kenyans. This is a part of the EU-Africa Partnership on Infrastructure and this underpins the EU strategy for Africa. This partnership was launched in 2007 as the EU believed that regional cooperation and integration would boost security, trade and prosperity and lead to further sustainable human development (EU-Africa, 2011). 4. China Mobile Limited 4.1 Company Background China Mobile Ltd (CHL) was incorporated in 1997 in Hong Kong and is listed on the New York Stock Exchange and The Stock Exchange of Hong Kong Limited. Apart from being the leading mobile services provider in Mainland China, the Group has the world’s largest mobile network and the largest customer base in the world. The company featured among the FT Global 500 by Financial Times and among “The World’s 2000 Biggest Public Companies” by Forbes magazine. It also enjoys a corporate credit rating of Aa3/outlook positive from, Moody’s Investor Service. The company has several subsidiaries in which it owns 100% interest and some others in which has the majority ownership. As of 31 December 2011, the Group has a customer base of nearly 650 million with a market share of 66.5% in Mainland China (China Mobile Limited, 2012). CHL is a closely held company with only 25.82 percent shares being held by public investors. This suggests that decision making is rapid and the company can respond to market changes swiftly. The operating revenue reached RMB266.5 billion which is up 6.6 percent from the previous year (Media Release, 2012). However, the Group faces challenges due to increase in mobile penetration, intense competition, introduction of new technologies and services replacing traditional communication services. Despite these challenges, the company remains committed to sustainable development. The Group has been able to retain its leadership position in the market and registers steady growth. They focus on quality and remain committed to their mantra “Customers are our priority, quality service is our principle”. The company enjoys good profitability and strong cash flow which supports its sustainable development. The company however recognizes that growth potential is shrinking and competitive advantage can be achieved through providing value to the customer. They hence focus on revitalizing through market-oriented mechanisms, through a flat organizational structure and through standardized procedures all of which lead to sustainable growth. With the focus on sustainable development CHL adheres to innovation and rebuilding of new core capability. The company also focuses on business integrity as they have strengthened risk management, improved internal control system, and launched anti-corruption to prevent corruption. The company constantly invests in new technology and expands ITC services into various fields. To achieve their strategic vision of “mobile changes life” they team up with partners to promote ICT integration into various arenas (China Mobile Limited, 2012). They are the only company to have been selected from mainland China in the Dow Jones Sustainability Index for the fourth consecutive years. China Mobile, which only operates on the Chinese Mainland, has overtaken Vodafone as the leading mobile phone operator even though Vodafone has presence in several major mobile markets around the world (Perrot and Verghese, 2003). The growth in the subscriber base in China every six months is equal to three to four years’ growth in some key European markets. The replacement market is also growing in China and hence CHL follows the strategy of handset upgradation which ensures customer retention. CHL enters into alliances and partnerships with different organizations to promote and retain its customer base. For instance, Nokia, the handset manufacturers from Finland have shown interest to partner with CHL which will give Nokia an opportunity to win back the Chinese market. CHL has no contract to sell iPhones and hence this partnership would enable them to sell Nokia’s Lumia 920 smart phone in the world’s largest mobile market (Rosendahl, 2012). This strategy also has the potential to increase its customer base and give them a competitive edge. 4.2 Motives for Internationalization CHL has been considering expanding into European countries as a sizeable number of Chinese are settled overseas. The company’s expansion is also part of Beijing’s “go global” policy which encourages Chinese companies to invest abroad (Stafford, 2008). Initially the company had plans to more into emerging markets. However, as European operators are investing in emerging markets, CHL also plans to do the same outside the home territory. Growing organically is a slow process and CHL intends to partner with local partners that have the ability to manage a robust network. Increased competition at home is another motive for overseas expansion. The company has limited overseas experience as it has presence only in China, Hong Kong and Pakistan, and hence limited to Asia. However, the company has a sustainable strategy, has the support of the local government that encourages overseas expansion and has the necessary financial and intangible resources necessary to venture overseas. 5. Telecom Sector Analysis 5.1 The EU and the Telecom Regulations The EU has the responsibility to regulate the mobile telecommunication with the member states. It provides a common regulatory framework and monitors its implementation. However, each member state has its own national regulatory authority to protect the consumers’ interest and establish an innovative, sustainable, and competitive telecommunications industry (Grzybowski, 2004). The intensity of the regulations varies across countries and hence the market structure and the prices differ across member states. The regulation policy has significantly influenced the competitiveness. The liberalization of fixed line telephony has positive impact on competitiveness in mobile telephone sector. Mobile number portability also has a positive impact on competitiveness as decrease in switching costs enhances competition leading to a drop in prices. The regulations monitored by the EU have a positive impact on the development of the sector. Besides, technological innovation also yields substantial annual increase in demand. 5.2 Belgium’s Telecom Sector Belgium’s telecom market is medium-sized with a user base of 12.8 million (Export.Gov, 2012). The Belgium telecom market grew by 2.9 percent in 2010 and reached a market value of 6.3 million. It is further forecast to reach $6.3 million by 2015. At present there are four major mobile network operators (MNO) – Belgacom (market share of 41 percent), Mobistar (France telecom with a market share of 31 percent), BASE (from Belgium) and Telenet Teecteo Bidco which has recently been granted license. Apart from these, there are several “Mobile Virtual Network Operators” (MVNOs) who jointly have a market share of 1.8 percent. Belgium has an almost equal number of pre-paid and post-paid users in the mobile telephony sector. The Belgian Institute for Postal services and Telecommunications (BIPT) is the regulatory authority for mobile telecom sector in Belgium. BIPT aims to encourage competition and protect consumers’ interest in addition to preparing legislation. They are also responsible for granting licenses. In Belgium popularity and demand for fixed line telephony has been decreasing which is evident from the performance of the Belgian mobile phone market. Mobile phones in Belgium have gained popularity as they are affordable and constant innovation takes place in the sector. Mobile phone penetration has been 121.1 per 100 people against fixed line penetration of 40.8 (Market Line, 2012). Mobile phone companies in Belgium, along with the internet service providers, offer the buyers unlimited prepaid plans, with wireless capabilities. This offers convenience and financial benefits to the consumers. Mobile phone providers also offer Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) applications in Belgium. The innovative smart phones, which can be used as media player, digital camera and GPS navigation system, have further enhanced the demand for mobile telephones. Besides, the same service provider offers fixed line service, mobile services, data transmission, television and internet. This strategy leads to decreased rivalry as the companies can fall back upon other segments for revenues. According to Euromonitor International (2010) the household penetration of mobile phones is very high as many consumers own more than one mobile phone. However, sale of mobile phones continues to be high because of replacement of phones. Besides, the introduction of “smart” phones has also stimulated the demand which accounted for a retail value share of 30% of mobile phones in 2009. The mobile sector is poised for growth because of the utility and the numerous benefits from smart phones as the characteristics of these phones meet the needs of the consumers. The sector analysis suggests that demand potential in Belgium is high for mobile telephones. However, competition is also intense but since foreign companies can operate with all benefits as domestic companies, foreign mobile phone operators have potential for growth in Belgium. 6. Mode of Entry Analysis 6.1 Market Entry Strategy Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) from emerging and transition economies have been growing at a very fast pace. In 2007 the FDI flows from these economies reached a record level of $253 billion (Al-Kaabi, Demirbag and Tatoglu, 2010). Thus MNEs from emerging economies are becoming important players in international business. In most nations the telecom sector has been deregulated which has opened up the sector. As such the sector is rife with mergers and acquisitions. Besides, telecom requires large infrastructure and hence the companies prefer joint ventures or acquisition rather than making Greenfield investments. International expansion in mobile telephony has other challenges such as localized marketing, client retention, and micro management of branches and retail partners. MNEs may have different motives for internationalization, which influences the choice of entry mode. The motives could vary from resource-seeking, market-seeking, opportunity-seeking, efficiency-seeking or strategic-asset seeking (Al-Kaabi, Demirbag and Tatoglu, 2010). Besides, the mode of entry also depends upon the sector and the host country characteristics. Firms may enter another market through joint venture with local partners or set up their own wholly-owned subsidiary. This depends upon resource commitment, and the level of risk and control and the competitive advantage sought by the MNE. In the telecom sector mergers and acquisitions are quite common as the new entrant benefits through an existing customer base, existing infrastructure and other complexities. Additionally, mobile operators buy business licenses in foreign markets and set up their own networks. They also enter into an agreement with a local partner as this helps them with human, technical and financial resources (Al-Kaabi, Demirbag and Tatoglu, 2010). Some MNEs enter foreign market through minority ownership in an existing network operator or they acquire control through majority ownership. Partial or full acquisition is preferred in the sector as it enables quick and direct entry. Internationalization of MNEs from the emerging economies is usually based on the Uppsala Model or the Eclectic Paradigm. In Uppsala model the process of internationalization is slow and incremental as the firm gains knowledge and expertise. MNEs tend to follow this path when they have fewer resources in terms of technology, financial capital and experienced management (Al-Kaabi, Demirbag and Tatoglu, 2010). There is also a tendency to enter markets that are similar in characteristics such as culture, language, bossiness practices, education and industrial development. The cultural fit is important in the sector as Vodafone and British telecom failed in Japan as they moved away from their cultural footprints. Dunning’s eclectic paradigm is the most widely used perspective that explains the internationalization of MNEs. In this approach, the ownership, location and internalization advantages are assessed. The ownership advantages are the firm-specific advantages while the locational advantages are the host country advantages. Internalization advantages pertain to how foreign production will be organized – through licensing or through FDI. Market entry strategy depends upon the host country characteristics. However, Qatar Telecom (QTel) from Gulf Cooperation Council, ventured overseas with the motive for growth and development and to obtain higher returns on investment (Al-Kaabi, Demirbag and Tatoglu, 2010). It adopted different strategies in different countries but entered mostly through M&As. Besides, they focused on culturally similar foreign environments in making their decisions. Its decisions were based on market opportunities. Alignment with the interest of the investors has also to be taken into account. Access to local market knowledge is essential in such ventures. Besides, in the sector there is constant need to invest in and expand the network. 6.2 Recommendations for CHL The regulatory environment in Belgium is conducive to foreign investors which is a prerequisite for new entrants. In addition, the competitive environment in China is also pushing CHL to venture overseas. CHL’s motive for internationalization is growth and development and this directs the market entry strategy. Since CHL intends to expand its market overseas as a growth strategy, it should attempt to enter through acquisition. It should try to obtain major stakes in any existing local mobile network operator (MNO). This strategy would be based on the Uppsala Model of internationalization as the company has no experience of European markets. It has, so far, concentrated on mainland China and Hong Kong markets, which are culturally similar. However, the company has technical, human and financial resources to support its venture in the European markets. Once it gains knowledge and expertise of the local business environment and culture, it could further expand. Because of predominant Chinese community in two areas in Belgium – Antwerp and Brussels (Wikipedia, 2010) – CHL should initially target these two areas. This strategy would have several advantages as below: Since China and Belgium are culturally apart, major stakes in an existing MNO would enable China Mobile Ltd to gain access to local market knowledge even though political risk in Belgium is very low. Belgium and China differ particularly in two cultural dimensions – power index and uncertainty avoidance. It is hence recommended that China Mobile should engage local MNO to gain expertise and knowledge of the market, the market structure and the customer preferences. Under this strategy, the revenue generated from the new market could be included in the overall revenues that are consolidated in the financial statement. As CHL has entered into an exclusive agreement with Nokia for their smart phone, they could enter into similar agreement for the Belgium market which would help create business synergies. Acquiring major stake in an existing MNO would not require heavy initial capital investment by CHL because mobile network requires a large infrastructure. Once they have gained sizeable returns on their investment, they could expand the network and their service to other regions in Belgium. 7. Conclusion This report, aimed at evaluating the prospects and the entry strategy for CHL into Belgium concludes that the market potential in Belgium for mobile network operators is high. The business environment in Belgium is attractive for foreign companies. As China and Belgium have signed telecom agreement, CHL should be the first MNO from China to enter the Belgium market. They should initially enter through acquiring major stakes in an existing MNO in the country and then gradually expand the network. References Al-Kaabi, M., Demirbag, M. and Tatoglu, E. 2010. International Market Entry Strategies of Emerging Market MNEs: A Case Study of Qatar Telecom. 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