The double-edged sword of digital transformation: peer influence, market concentration, and antitrust policy

作者：Hongjie Zhang, Feng He, Shilei Wu, Ehsan Elahi · 发表于：Technology Analysis and Strategic Management · 年份：2025 · DOI：10.1080/09537325.2025.2568889 · 被引用次数：1 · 研究领域：Digital Platforms and Economics、Corporate Finance and Governance、Entrepreneurship Studies and Influences

Digital transformation is reshaping how firms compete and operate in dynamic markets. This study examines peer behaviour – where firms adjust their digital strategies in response to comparable peers – using data from Chinese listed companies between 2010 and 2020. Employing high-dimensional fixed-effects regressions and instrumental variable methods, we find robust evidence of peer effects, particularly among growth-stage, capital – and technology-intensive, and non-state-owned enterprises. Firms adopt digital technologies through both passive competition and proactive mimicry, which enhance economic performance but exhibit an inverted U-shaped relationship with environmental outcomes. These findings provide actionable insights into peer-driven digital adoption and offer targeted implications for strategic digital planning, antitrust regulation, and industry self-governance.