Similar technology, complementary technology and long-term shareholder value of acquiring firm in technology acquisitions: Evidence from high-tech industries in China

Abstract

Technology acquisitions have become a much researched phenomenon in recent years. The relationship between technology acquisitions and innovative performance of acquiring firms attracted the interests of many scholars. The previous empirical research did not give evidence on the effect of technology acquisitions on shareholder value of acquiring firms. The difference between similar technology and complementary technology was overlooked in most previous research on technology relatedness in technology acquisitions. In this article, we explored event study to examine the effect of technology acquisitions on long-term shareholder value of acquiring firms. For a sample of 100 technology acquisitions in high-tech industries in China from 2004 to 2008, we found that technology acquisitions had negative effect on long-term shareholder value of acquiring firms on average. We also found that acquiring a target firm occupied by similar technology compared with the technology of acquiring firm had no effect on long-term shareholder value of acquiring firm. Acquisition of a target firm occupied by complementary technology had negative effect on long-term shareholder value of acquiring firm. And the negative effects appeared around one year and a half to the 28th month following the technology acquisitions. © 2031 Asian Network for Scientific Information.