International Business Reports     The International Takeoff of New Products: The Role of Economics, Culture and Country Innovativeness by Gerard J. Tellis, Stefan Stremersch and Eden Yin Sales takeoff is vitally important for the management of new products. Limited prior research on this phenomenon covers only the US. This study addresses the following questions about takeoff in Europe: (1) Does takeoff occur as distinctly in other countries, as it does in the US? (2) Do different categories and countries have consistently different times-to-takeoff? (3) What economic and cultural factors explain the inter-country differences? (4) Should managers use a sprinkler or waterfall strategy for the introduction of new products across countries? We gathered data on 137 new products across 10 categories and 16 European countries. We adapted the threshold rule for identifying takeoff (Golder and Tellis 1997) to this multinational context. We specify a parametric hazard model to answer the questions above.   The major results are as follows: (1) Sales of most new products display a distinct takeoff in various European countries, at an average of 6 years after introduction. (2) The time-to-takeoff varies substantially across countries and categories. It is four times shorter for entertainment products than for kitchen & laundry appliances. It is almost half as long in Scandinavian countries as in Mediterranean countries. (3) While culture partially explains inter-country differences in time-to-takeoff, economic factors are neither strong nor robust explanatory factors. (4) These results suggest distinct advantages to a waterfall strategy for introducing products in international markets. Keywords: international new product growth, new product takeoff, new product growth, international diffusion, diffusion of innovations.   ***  Gerard J. Tellis, Stefan Stremersch, Eden Yin, "The international takeoff of new products: The role of economics, culture, and country innovativeness." Marketing Science 22(2) 188-208. Copyright 2003, INFORMS, 901 Elkridge Landing Road, Suite 400, Linthicum, Maryland 21090. This article is available in pdf from informs@informs.org or at Takeoff   Erosion of National Sovereignty by 21st Century Technology - Exclusive Report by Stephen Taylor, Executive Director of the International Business Center - this report is in Adobe .PDF file format     Managing Cross-Cultural Transition: A Handbook for Corporations, Employees, and their Families Interview with author Steven Shepard about his book of the same title - this report is in Adobe .PDF file format

. . .   We have included in this area a number of reports of interest and value to international managers.