Co-Evolution of the Industry and the Governance Modes: A Case Study on Iran Computer Games Foundation's Governance of the Digital Games

Governance modes are considered as the context of policy programs. Meanwhile, these modes can evolve over time, resulting in sequential changes in the settings of policy programs. Significantly, the governance mode can cause changes in the industry, and in return, environmental changes can also be an effective factor in the evolution of the governance modes. While it is important to consider this co-evolution to prevent the weakness in predictability and implementation capability of policy programs, fewer studies have investigated this relationship. This paper attempts to examine the co-evolution of governance modes and the industry in the digital game sector which is faced with extensive technological and innovative changes. A case study has been conducted about the governance experience of Iran Computer Games Foundation (IRCG) as the axial institution for the governance of this field in the country. The results indicate that the dominant governance mode of IRCG has caused changes in Iran's game industry and reciprocally the events of the industry have also caused the evolution of the IRCG's governance modes, from corporate governance to legal governance, market governance, and then network governance. This paper can provide policy researchers and policymakers with a more accurate understanding of the nature and importance of governance modes for designing policy programs.