Business Strategies of Incumbents in the Market for Electric Vehicles: Opportunities and Incentives for Sustainable Innovation
Open accessAbstract
This paper focuses on the relation between large car manufacturers’ incentive and opportunity to innovate and their electric vehicle (EV) business strategies. We analyze how environmental regulation and the firm's incentive (measured by net income) and opportunity to innovate (measured by EV asset position, determined from a combination of patent, partnership and prototype data) affected EV sales over the period 1990–2011. During the EV's R&D period in the 1990s, large car manufacturers that were regulated by the full zero emission vehicle mandate developed a significantly stronger EV asset position, but did not sell significantly more EVs than their rivals. During the EV's commercialization period (2007–2011), large car manufacturers with both a strong incentive and a strong opportunity to innovate sold significantly more EVs. Based on these results, the paper offers a typology of business strategies, several managerial implications, and recommendations for policy makers to stimulate sustainable development. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd and ERP Environment
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Cites
Barley, S. R. (1986) · Administrative Science Quarterly · doi:10.2307/2392767 · Cited by 2,315 · see citing works
Experience effects and collaborative returns in R&D alliances
Sampson, R. C. (2005) · Strategic Management Journal · doi:10.1002/smj.483 · Cited by 443 · see citing works
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- Authors
- Wesseling, J. H., Niesten, E. M. M. I., Faber, J., & Hekkert, M. P.
- Affiliations
- Utrecht University (NL)
- Corresponding author
- Wesseling, J. H.
- Venue
- Business Strategy and the Environment
- Publisher
- Wiley
- Published
- 2013-12-28
- Volume
- 24
- Issue
- 6
- Pages
- 518-531
- ISSN
- 0964-4733 (ISSN-L)
- 1099-0836
- OpenAlex
- W1499376076
- Cited by
- 128
- References
- 2
- Citations by year
- 2026: 18 · 2025: 11 · 2024: 12 · 2023: 9 · 2022: 17 · 2021: 15 · 2020: 8 · 2019: 8 · 2018: 5 · 2017: 11 · 2016: 2 · 2015: 10 · 2014: 2
- FWCI
- 2.64
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- bronze
- doi.org
- Locations
- Business Strategy and the Environment (publishedVersion)
- Research Explorer (The University of Manchester) (publishedVersion, other-oa)
- RePEc: Research Papers in Economics (submittedVersion)
- Utrecht University Repository (Utrecht University) (submittedVersion, other-oa)
- Lund University Publications (Lund University) (submittedVersion)
- Funders
- Nederlandse Organisatie voor Wetenschappelijk Onderzoek
- Topics
- Physical Sciences › Engineering › Electrical and Electronic Engineering › Electric Vehicles and Infrastructure
- Social Sciences › Business, Management and Accounting › Marketing › Environmental Sustainability in Business
- Social Sciences › Economics, Econometrics and Finance › Economics and Econometrics › Firm Innovation and Growth
- Keywords
- electric vehicles, incumbent firms, car manufacturers, business strategy, innovation incentives, environmental regulation, zero-emission vehicle mandate, EV sales, patent activity, partnership, prototype, sustainable innovation, sustainable development policy
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