Increasingly accepted as a fundamental practice, corporate social responsibility (CSR) remains an ambiguous concept, lacking a clear definition (Tench et al., 2012:6) and a systemic conceptual framework (Carroll, 1999). Discipline is summarized as a company's obligation to contribute to the well-being of society and the organization (Daft et al., 2010:134). In short, CSR encompasses business practices that operationalize relationships and impacts on stakeholders and the environment (Waddock, 2004:9). Although the perspective implies voluntariness (CEC, 2001), there is an established business case for CSR. The literature recognizes the long-term profitability of CSR, especially in the form of brand loyalty, employee satisfaction or operational efficiency (Pivato et al, 2008) . CSR positively affects economic performance, employee involvement and reputation management (Orlitzky et al., 2003; Xueming and Bhattacharya, 2006; Sen et al., 2006:164). In summary, two fundamental notions emerge. First, CSR involves the intrinsic recognition of “a broad and integrated set of stakeholders” (Cochran, 1994). From Friedman's (1970: 33) mere profit-generating function, CSR introduces economic, legal, ethical and discretionary corporate responsibilities (Carroll, 1979: 500). Second, companies find a strategic interest in pursuing CSR. On the one hand, voluntariness refers to the search for legitimacy and compliance with legal and ethical requirements, nominally Donaldson and Dunfee's (1999) “license to operate”. On the other hand, pursuing CSR can bring benefits, summarized by Key and Popkin as “doing well by doing good” (1998). Therefore, CSR appears double-edged. CSR is considered a necessary tool which, however, due to the link...... middle of paper ......d, UK:473–479..Waddock, S. (2004).Parallel Universes: Companies, academics and the advancement of corporate citizenship. Business and Society Review, 109(1):5–24Wanderley, L.S., Lucian, R., Farache, F. and De Sousa Filho, J.O. (2008) CSR Information disclosure on the web: a context-based approach that analyzes the influence of the country of origin and the industrial sector. Journal of Business Ethics, 82:369-378.Whitehouse, L. (2006) Corporate social responsibility – frontline views, Journal of Business Ethics, 63:279-296.Würtz, E. (2004). Intercultural communication on websites, In Sudweeks, F. and Ess, C. (2004) Cultural attitudes towards technology and communication, pp. 109-122. School of Information TechnologyXueming, L., & Bhattacharya, C.B., (2006). Corporate social responsibility, customer satisfaction and market value. Marketing Journal, 70 (4):1-18