• Journal of the Korean Society of Systems Engineering
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• v.20 no.spc1
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• pp.45-55
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• 2024

Amidst the challenges of the global economy, this paper examines the investment tendencies of professional angel investors, who provide venture capital and management consulting, and explores strategies to revitalize angel investment. According to the research findings, professional angel investors are generally older and more educated than regular angel investors, and they are concentrated in the metropolitan region. Additionally, their investment performance before and after registration remains similar, with investment amounts concentrated between 50 million and 100 million won. Their investment portfolios focus on ICT services, bio/medical, and distribution/service sectors. Based on these findings, policy and institutional support measures are required to revitalize angel investment, including easing registration requirements for professional angel investors, expanding tax benefits related to angel investment, strengthening the provision of information and education related to angel investment, and enhancing angel investment networking. This study is expected to contribute to the revitalization of the venture startup ecosystem and economic growth through the revitalization of angel investment.

• Journal of Platform Technology
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• v.9 no.4
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• pp.10-31
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• 2021

The digital tax, recently referred to as the Google tax was finally agreed at the 31st General Assembly of the OECD (October 8, 2021) with full support by 136 countries and will take effect from 2023. The purpose of this study is to analyze the digital tax prepared by the OECD for global MNEs, and to suggest the impacts on the Korean industry and to present the Korean governmental countermeasures. As the first study, we analyzed the international agreement on digital tax. In results, we found that even if global MNEs do not set up a business operation in overseas countries, if sales and profits are generated, 25% of the excess profit is borne as tax (pillar 1), and when MNEs do business in all the countries, they are liable to at least a 15% tax (pillar 2). We think that countries around the world have prepared a minimum countermeasure to protect their companies in anticipation that global MNEs will easily encroach on their markets in the future. As the second study, in order to discover the reason why the MNEs are so strong, we investigated the trends of Google and B2B SaaS companies in details. In results, we discovered that the global MNEs establishes a digital platform partnership ecosystem that enables them to enter foreign markets easily and expand rapidly. In conclusion, as a countermeasure for the Republic of Korea, governmental policies were proposed at the corporate (startup nurturing), industry, and national level respectively.

• Asia-Pacific Journal of Business Venturing and Entrepreneurship
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• v.16 no.6
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• pp.145-155
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• 2021

This study aims to examine the results of start-up policies of the previous government (2013-2017) and the current government (2017-2022). We would like to compare the perceptions of founders on the domestic start-up environment in 2016 and 2021. Based on the data (GETR) that surveyed the perception of the startup environment in 2016, a trend survey was conducted to compare the perception of the start-up environment of founders in 2021. As a result of the study, the founder's perception of the domestic start-up environment changed positively overall, but there was no significant change in the perception of 'tax adequacy', 'easy to recover investment', and 'easy to transfer technology'. In addition, the perception of the start-up environment of livelihood founders was negative compared to opportunity-type start-ups. As such, different results were found for each type of start-up. This study analyzed the difference in perception of the past and present start-up environment from the perspective of founders. In particular, I would like to propose a plan to improve the quality of the domestic start-up environment by seeking support measures for livelihood-type start-ups that have collapsed due to COVID-19.

• Asia-Pacific Journal of Business Venturing and Entrepreneurship
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• v.17 no.6
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• pp.25-37
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• 2022

The purpose of this study is to survey startup founders within 7 years of founding the importance and satisfaction of the components of the scale-up entrepreneurial ecosystem at the national level in Korea and analyze the direction of scale-up policy by component using IPA (importance-performance analysis). Since the perception of founders, who are the subjects of the entrepreneurial ecosystem, affects the quantity and quality of start-ups, research is needed to analyze and diagnose the perception of scale-up components. For the development of the national economy and entrepreneurial ecosystem, companies that emerge from startups to scale-up and unicorns must be produced, and for this, elements for the scale-up entrepreneurial ecosystem are needed. The results of this study are as follows. First, the importance ranking of the components of the scale-up entrepreneurial ecosystem recognized by founders was in the order of "Financial support by growth stage," "Support for customized scale-up for enterprises," "Improvement of regulations," "Funds dedicated to scale-up," "large-scale investment," and "nurturing technical talents." Second, the factors that should be intensively improved in the importance-satisfaction matrix in the future were 'Pan-Government Integration Promotion Plan', 'Scale-Up Specialized Organization Operation', 'Company Customized Scale-Up Support', 'Regulatory Improvement', and 'Building a Korean Scale-Up Model'. As a result, various and large financial capital for the scale-up entrepreneurial ecosystem, diversification of scale-up programs by business sector, linkage of start-ups and scale-up support, deregulation of new technologies and new industries, strengthening corporate-tailored scale-up growth capabilities, and providing overseas networking opportunities can be derived. In addition, it is expected to contribute to policy practice and academic work with research that derives the components of the domestic scale-up entrepreneurial ecosystem and diagnoses its perception.

• Asia-Pacific Journal of Business Venturing and Entrepreneurship
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• v.18 no.3
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• pp.191-209
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• 2023

Amid rapid changes in technological innovation due to the influence of the 4th Industrial Revolution and COVID-19, research related to absorption capacity and patent activities to promote technological innovation of Korean technology start-ups is important in this uncertain environment. This study aims to examine the effects on entrepreneurial performance and patent activities by reconstructing absorptive capacity, an organizational capability, for technology-based startups in fields such as BT and ICT with less than seven years of establishment, distinguishing between potential absorptive capacity and realized absorptive capacity. The study also seeks to develop a theoretical research model. To accomplish this, data was collected from managerial executives, including CEOs of 215 technology startups. The following hypotheses were tested: Firstly, potential absorptive capacity had a significant impact on patent activities, while realized absorptive capacity did not. Secondly, potential absorptive capacity had a significant impact on technological performance, while realized absorptive capacity did not. Thirdly, both potential and realized absorptive capacity had a significant impact on financial and non-financial performance. Fourthly, patent activities indirectly influenced potential absorptive capacity and technological performance, but did not affect realized absorptive capacity. Fifthly, patent activities indirectly influenced potential absorptive capacity and financial performance, but did not affect realized absorptive capacity. Lastly, patent activities indirectly influenced potential absorptive capacity and non-financial performance, but did not affect realized absorptive capacity. The practical significance of this study lies in providing useful guidelines for building the core capabilities of organizations through absorptive capacity and patent activities. Furthermore, it is expected that startups that have not recognized the formation process of absorptive capacity for patent activities will perceive the formation mechanism of absorptive capability anew and show considerable interest in future potential and realized absorptive capacity as part of their management strategies. This is anticipated to play an important role in adapting to rapidly changing technological advancements, the startup ecosystem, and securing sustainable competitive advantages.

• Asia-Pacific Journal of Business Venturing and Entrepreneurship
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• v.15 no.5
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• pp.221-233
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• 2020

The purpose of this study is to prove the relationship of major variables derived based on prior research on factors affecting the start-up performance of youth mall young merchants in traditional markets, and to empirically analyze the relationship between major factors based on the results. The factors affecting the start-up performance of the youth mall in traditional markets were divided into government support programs and entrepreneurship, and the cooperation between the start-up preparation and merchants was established as variables that mediated the influence between the start-up performance and entrepreneurship performance. The analysis showed that entrepreneurship had a statistically significant positive effect on start-up readiness, while government-supported programs, entrepreneurship and start-up readiness had a significant positive effect on start-up performance. In addition, as a result of verifying the mediated effects of the research model, it was verified that the indirect effects of entrepreneurship on the performance of start-up by mediating the preparation of start-ups were significant. Through this study, the government support program should be supported in consideration of the characteristics of young merchants, not of the current consistent support, and means that youth merchants should be thoroughly verified in the recruitment, selection, and promotion stages, and young merchants with high entrepreneurship and start-up readiness should be selected.

• Asia-Pacific Journal of Business Venturing and Entrepreneurship
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• v.16 no.6
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• pp.241-248
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• 2021

Firms have many ways to expand their businesses including M&A. Big companies in online and offline businesses show different ways of expansion with different objectives to expand their digital businesses quickly. Expansions for technical reasons are to acquire technologies they do not have while those for business reasons are M&A for offline companies to have competence in markets by acquiring online companies. Other ways of expansions include spin-off and group participation after investments for startups. Various ways of expansions are chosen because they are optimal choices depending on situations the companies face, and they have different strengths and weaknesses. To analyze the strengths and weaknesses of those options for expansion at this stage would be academically valuable, and also practically meaningful in terms of providing insights for companies' decision making in choosing opitions for expansions. M&A of online companies to make multi-channels by offline companies have risks of failing to internalize online companies and have enough synergy effects. Also, spin-off is a relatively less risky way of expansion while the speed of expansion is slower than establishing external startups with some shares of equity and making them as affiliated companies. External startups are good for speed of expansion while there are risks of legal regulations and negative awareness by the public.

• Asia-Pacific Journal of Business Venturing and Entrepreneurship
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• v.18 no.4
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• pp.1-20
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• 2023

This study attempted to identify the relationship between the investment determinants of accelerators and investment performance through empirical analysis. Through literature review, four dimensions and 12 measurement items were extracted for investment determinants, which are independent variables, and investment performance was adjusted to the cumulative amount of subsequent investment based on previous studies. Performance data from 594 companies selected by TIPS from 2017 to 2019, which are relatively reliable and easy to secure data, were collected, and the subsequent investment cumulative attraction amount, which is a dependent variable, was hypothesized through multiple regression analysis three years after the investment. As a result of the study, 'industrial experience years' in the characteristics of founders, 'market size', 'market growth', 'competitive strength', and 'number of patents' in the characteristics of products and services had a significant positive (+) effect. The impact of independent variables on dependent variables was most influenced by the competitive strength of market characteristics, followed by the number of years of industrial experience, the number of patents, the size of the market, and market growth. This was different from the results of previous studies conducted mainly on qualitative research methods, and in most previous studies, the characteristics of founders were the most important, but the empirical analysis results were market characteristics. As a sub-factor, the intensity of competition, which was the subordinate to the importance of previous studies, had the greatest influence in empirical analysis. The academic significance of this study is that it presented a specific methodology to collect and build 594 empirical samples in the absence of empirical research on accelerator investment determinants, and created an opportunity to expand the theoretical discussion of investment determinants through causal research. In practice, the information asymmetry and uncertainty of startups that accelerators have can help them make effective investment decisions by establishing a systematic model of experience-dependent investment determinants.

• Asia pacific journal of information systems
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• v.20 no.1
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• pp.127-140
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• 2010

The benefit that a consumer derives from the use of a good often depends on the number of other consumers purchasing the same goods or other compatible items. This property, which is known as network externality, is significant in many IT related industries. Over the past few decades, network externalities have been recognized in the context of physical networks such as the telephone and railroad industries. Today, as many products are provided as a form of system that consists of compatible components, the appreciation of network externality is becoming increasingly important. Network externalities have been extensively studied among economists who have been seeking to explain new phenomena resulting from rapid advancements in ICT (Information and Communication Technology). As a result of these efforts, a new body of theories for 'New Economy' has been proposed. The theoretical bottom-line argument of such theories is that technologies subject to network effects exhibit multiple equilibriums and will finally lock into a monopoly with one standard cornering the entire market. They emphasize that such "tippiness" is a typical characteristic in such networked markets, describing that multiple incompatible technologies rarely coexist and that the switch to a single, leading standard occurs suddenly. Moreover, it is argued that this standardization process is path dependent, and the ultimate outcome is unpredictable. With incomplete information about other actors' preferences, there can be excess inertia, as consumers only moderately favor the change, and hence are themselves insufficiently motivated to start the bandwagon rolling, but would get on it once it did start to roll. This startup problem can prevent the adoption of any standard at all, even if it is preferred by everyone. Conversely, excess momentum is another possible outcome, for example, if a sponsoring firm uses low prices during early periods of diffusion. The aim of this paper is to analyze the dynamics of the adoption process in markets exhibiting network effects by focusing on two factors; switching and agent heterogeneity. Switching is an important factor that should be considered in analyzing the adoption process. An agent's switching invokes switching by other adopters, which brings about a positive feedback process that can significantly complicate the adoption process. Agent heterogeneity also plays a important role in shaping the early development of the adoption process, which has a significant impact on the later development of the process. The effects of these two factors are analyzed by developing an agent-based simulation model. ABM is a computer-based simulation methodology that can offer many advantages over traditional analytical approaches. The model is designed such that agents have diverse preferences regarding technology and are allowed to switch their previous choice. The simulation results showed that the adoption processes in a market exhibiting networks effects are significantly affected by the distribution of agents and the occurrence of switching. In particular, it is found that both weak heterogeneity and strong network effects cause agents to start to switch early and this plays a role of expediting the emergence of 'lock-in.' When network effects are strong, agents are easily affected by changes in early market shares. This causes agents to switch earlier and in turn speeds up the market's tipping. The same effect is found in the case of highly homogeneous agents. When agents are highly homogeneous, the market starts to tip toward one technology rapidly, and its choice is not always consistent with the populations' initial inclination. Increased volatility and faster lock-in increase the possibility that the market will reach an unexpected outcome. The primary contribution of this study is the elucidation of the role of parameters characterizing the market in the development of the lock-in process, and identification of conditions where such unexpected outcomes happen.