Final answer:
A strategic alliance is a market entry strategy where companies partner to enter a foreign market without investing in each other.
Step-by-step explanation:
The market entry strategy in which independent companies form a partnership to collaborate in the foreign market without investing in each other is known as a strategic alliance. This collaboration allows companies to share resources, knowledge, and expertise to enter a new market while maintaining their autonomy. Unlike franchising, which involves a franchisor providing a licensed privilege to the franchisee to do business, or direct investment, which involves a firm investing directly in facilities to produce or market a product in a foreign country, strategic alliances do not require equity investment from the partners.