Navigating the splinternet : How data regulations shape digital marketing personalization

In an ever-changing digital landscape, the concept of the “splinternet” dividing the global Internet into regional segments poses a challenge for international businesses. This thesis explores how transnational data regulations impact the ability of multinational companies to implement personalization marketing. Drawing on interviews with six different companies of varying sizes and industries, the study investigates the relationship of institutional pressures, electronic customer relationship management (eCRM) and dynamic marketing capabilities and their effects on the level of personalization achievable. The findings reveal that the smaller firms interviewed are limited to segmentation-level personalization due to lacking expertise and capacity to leverage customer data while the larger firms. The larger firms, however, were also unable to reach individual-level personalization despite having the resources to adapt, as the complexity of data regulations made such levels of personalization unfeasible. Finally, the thesis highlights the interrelated observations of the critical role of third parties as well as the functions of interpretation and proactive adaptation to regulations. The research contributes to the theoretical and practical implications of the splinternet’s effects on shaping marketing practices across digital borders.