Learning from competing partners: outcomes and durations of scale and link alliances in Europe, North America and Asia
研究了竞争企业间战略联盟的结果与持续时间，发现链接联盟（互补能力）比规模联盟（相似能力）更易导致重组或收购，而规模联盟更可能无重大变化持续，表明链接联盟促进更多学习与能力获取。
This paper investigates the outcomes and durations of strategic alliances among competing firms, using alliance outcomes as indicators of learning by partner firms. We show that alliance outcomes vary systematically across link and scale alliances. Link alliances are interfirm partnerships to which partners contribute different capabilities, while scale alliances are partnerships to which partners contribute similar capabilities. We find that partners are more likely to reorganize or take over link alliances than scale alliances. By contrast, scale alliances are more likely to continue without material changes. The two types of alliances are equally likely to shut down, at similar ages. These results support the view that link alliances lead to greater levels of learning and capability acquisition between the partners than do scale alliances. Copyright © 2000 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.