A Grounded Theory of Technology Convergence and Technology Divergence

Technology convergence and technology divergence are recognised as critical forces shaping modern socio-economic development. Yet little is known about how organisations understand, navigate, and strategically act upon these technological dynamics. Existing scholarship has largely approached convergence from macro-level or industry perspectives, while divergence has been treated as a type of diversification. No study to date has examined technology convergence and divergence as strategic options enacted at the organisational level. Addressing this gap, this research investigates how organisations interpret and engage in technology convergence and technology divergence, and how these processes interact over time. Guided by Peirce’s constructivist theory of truth and adopting Constructivist Grounded Theory, the study explores the phenomena in their natural context — the Interactive TV market — where technology convergence and technology divergence are highly visible and organisationally consequential. Data were generated through theoretical sampling, semi-structured interviews with industry executives and consultants, and analysis of organisational artefacts. Initial, focused, and theoretical coding supported the development of a grounded process model. The analysis reveals that technology convergence and technology divergence operate not as independent or sequential choices, but as a continuous, mutually reinforcing duality within organisational strategy. Two core processes — technology multiplexing, the emergent functional combination of technology convergence and technology divergence within the same context, and value-laden content delivery — drive a chain of external process structures that collectively form an expanding technology convergence ecosystem. This ecosystem is temporal, socially constructed, and organisationally enacted, shaping and shaped by firms’ expectations of future technological trajectories. The key contribution of the research is the Dynamic Model of Technology Convergence and Technology Divergence, comprising interrelated process categories that develop in concert. This model offers an original theoretical contribution by framing technology convergence and technology divergence as a strategic duality at the organisational level, serving as an integrative nexus among the existing theorisations of technology convergence and technology divergence, extending paradox and ambidexterity theory, and providing a practical foundation for strategic technology planning. The findings also inform anticipatory governance and balanced innovation policy and demonstrate Constructivist Grounded Theory as a method for theorising emergent socio-technical phenomena.