Complementary resources, appropriability and vertical interfirm relations in the Italian movie industry

Resource-based view research plays a prominent role in strategic management studies. In this paper we investigate the relativistic interpretation of the "scarcity" concept, the appropriability of complementary resources, the measurability of the contribution that a specific resource brings to the overall value of the firm. The theoretical issues have been made context specific trying to show (a) how a not-scarce complementary resource like movie theatres can help build value for the distributor, mainly through the creation of reputation for the subsequent TV broadcasting; (b) that this resource can be appropriated from different companies; (c) that companies can develop different kinds of interfirm relationships in order to control complementary resources; (d) that reliable and valid parameters can be provided to measure the value of resources and the related degree of control from the distributors. Supporting empirical evidence is provided and implications for managing complementary resources are discussed. © 1998 Kluwer Academic Publishers.