Motives and boundary conditions of mergers and acquisitions in media : a Nordic perspective

In accordance with this strong tradition, acquisitions have generally been considered as conscious acts that are driven by rational choice. Meanwhile, alternative and especially critical perspectives have not gained much ground in acquisition research (e.g. Vaara & Tienari 2002, Vaara 2004). Researchers do admit that multiple processes are involved in M&A (Shimizu et al. 2004) and that many questions related to acquisition process are intertwined (Haspeslagh & Jemison 1991). However, the complexity of these processes and particularly the role of the context-related factors in terms of the taken actions are not revealed. This applies also to literature on acquisition motives (Angwin 2007b). According to the common assumption, the acquisition process is initiated by the careful analysis of company needs, scanning potential partners and evaluating them carefully (e.g. Bagchi & Rao 1992). The prime actor in this process is acquiring firm management whose sole (legitimate) motivation is to increase economic value for acquiring shareholders (Angwin 2007b). However, the prevailing assumptions of this notion may be challenged