The role of standards in innovation and diffusion of broadband mobile services: The case of South Korea

Abstract

We explore the evolution of the mobile infrastructure in South Korea through the lens of actor network theory. In particular, we analyze the roles of standards in promoting, enabling and constraining innovation in broadband mobile services over a 10-year period. During this period, Korea moved from the position of a follower to the forefront of the mobile computing revolution by erecting one of the world's most advanced broadband mobile infrastructures. Our study shows how CDMA standards shaped specific configurations of actor networks that enabled the fast and aggressive development and deployment of 2G mobile infrastructures and a rapid transition to 3G services. These actor networks span three separate and critical realms of activities: the regulatory regime, the innovation system, and the market place. Our in-depth case analysis shows how specific connections and events across these three realms promoted the rapid expansion and deployment of mobile services in Korea. Our study suggests that successful innovation and diffusion of broadband mobile services are collective achievements and firms need to deploy strategies that enable them to mobilize broad socio-technical networks that include technological, institutional, political and financial resources. At the heart of such strategies, standards play critical roles as they mediate different interests and motivations among participating actors. © 2005 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.