Outward processing trade as measured in the macroeconomic statistics became an important factor of Hungarian exports during the 1990s. Likewise, it played an important role in many Hungarian manufacturing companies in the form of subcontracting as a type of business contact. The basic characteristics of subcontracting changed very much during the past decade worldwide, and the relationship of partners in this form of cooperation became more balanced. Another distinct microeconomic development was the establishment of new types of cooperation networks. Outsourcing, for example, became a spreading form of cooperation. These two developments inspired the author to try and check if subcontracting can be interpreted as a special form of outsourcing. If this hypothesis proves true then the previous negative interpretations of subcontracting will also require reconsideration...