Research On The Status Quo And Location Choice Of Chinese Internet Enterprises' Outward Direct Investment

In recent years,with the decline in the growth rate of Internet users in China,the domestic regulatory environment becoming increasingly strict,the operating costs of enterprises has risen.Foreign direct investment(hereinafter referred to as "ODI")has gradually become a new direction for Internet companies to seek development.Therefore,it is more and more important to study the motivation and status of Internet companies' ODI and the factors influencing location choices to help companies formulate better location strategies.This paper collects 262 cases of Chinese Internet companies ODI from 2000 to 2018,and summarizes the motivations and current status of Internet companies' ODI,and conducts case and empirical research on the factors influencing location selection.The research find that :(1)The main body of Chinese Internet companies ODI are BAT.Driven by market and strategic asset seeking,they focus on building Internet ecology by M&A which is the main method.(2)Market size,population,consumption capacity,strategic asset,political and legal system,informatization level,and geographic distance are the main factors that affect the Internet companies' ODI location choices.market growth potential,population structure advantages and economic system are minor factors.(3)The influence of market growth potential,strategic asset and informatization level is different under different investment drivers.(4)Compared with other companies,Internet companies location choices are mainly related to market size,strategic asset,but not to natural resource and labor costs.There are industry-specific factors such as total population and population structure advantages in Internet companies' location choices and Internet companies are more susceptible to informatization level.Contrary to most previous research conclusion,Internet companies tend to choose countries with poor political and legal systems in order to avoid industry supervision and data security issues.This article puts forward suggestions from the level of government and enterprises.The government should build an ODI exchange platform for Internet enterprises.Enterprises should strengthen their own advantages,formulating stable strategies based on investment motivation and the location condition of host country.