Traditionally, entrepreneurship research deals with innovative business ideas. Start-up businesses founded on the base of imitated concepts were, in the past, disregarded. Although, most start-up businesses (including growth-oriented ones) emerged by adoption or modification of already established business models.

There are several reasons for an increase in the importance of imitation strategies during the past centuries. In the course of globalization of markets and by improvement of informative and communicative technologies, not only products and technologies, but information can spread over boundaries easily. This simplifies international diffusion of business concepts through imitation.

In the article several questions, which emerge in the context of international diffusion of business concepts, are worked out and summarized in a research agenda.

In terms of research, this means to have a closer look at the relationship between entrepreneurship and diffusion. Seven research areas are distinguished by a schematic diffusion process. Topics of special importance are the origin of business concepts and detectable diffusion patterns. Additionally, factors ranging from adopter-features across usage of network contacts to setting factors, which can influence the diffusion and success of imitated business concepts, are identified.