University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign

Understanding the value-chain of counterfeit products: A multimethod investigation

Sreekumar Arun, -

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SREEKUMARARUN-DISSERTATION-2021.pdf

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https://hdl.handle.net/2142/110664

Description

Title
Understanding the value-chain of counterfeit products: A multimethod investigation
Author(s)
Sreekumar Arun, -
Issue Date
2021-04-15
Director of Research (if dissertation) or Advisor (if thesis)
Viswanathan, Madhubalan
Doctoral Committee Chair(s)
Viswanathan, Madhubalan
Committee Member(s)
  • Otnes, Cornelia
  • Rindfleisch, Aric
  • Echambadi, Raj
Department of Study
Business Administration
Discipline
Business Administration
Degree Granting Institution
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
Degree Name
Ph.D.
Degree Level
Dissertation
Date of Ingest
2021-09-17T02:34:25Z
Keyword(s)
  • Ambiguity
  • counterfeit
  • equivocation
  • emerging markets
  • illegal markets
Abstract
The context of this dissertation is the market for counterfeit products, which accounts for more than one trillion US dollars of trade globally every year. Entrepreneurs who manufacture and market these products are clandestine and operate in the black market. Drawing from this context, this dissertation seeks to advance knowledge on how entrepreneurs strategically use ambiguity in marketing communications, and in relationships with other firms. The first essay examines how and why equivocation is used as a persuasive strategy by sellers of counterfeit products. This essay develops a framework that can help qualitatively and quantitatively identify equivocation rhetoric in firm-generated text. The second essay examines how relationships between firms are managed when one of the firms employs ambiguity as a protection strategy. Specifically, the essay sheds light on how manufacturers and retailers of counterfeit products succeed in maintaining ambiguity, and in managing relationship tension arising from ambiguity. Put together, the essays present an investigation of how counterfeit manufacturers and retailers conduct their marketing functions despite being clandestine and illegal.
Graduation Semester
2021-05
Type of Resource
Thesis
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http://hdl.handle.net/2142/110664
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Copyright 2021 - Sreekumar Arun

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