Factors Affecting Mobile Phone Use Among Undergraduate Students in Turkey

Mobile phones are one of the fastest-adopted innovations in history. Globally, mobile phones have rapidly become widespread in most parts of the world, especially among the young generation. Young people constitute an important and significant part of mobile phone users. In this study, the author examined the factors affecting mobile phone use among undergraduate students in a developing country. The research data was collected through a convenience sample of undergraduate students in a public university in Turkey. Exploratory factor analysis was used to examine the underlying factors in mobile phone use. Nine factors are identified from the results of factor analysis such as “Information,” “Attitude,” “Mobility,” “Functional service,” “Entertainment/Relaxation,” “Convenience,” “Fashion,” “Sense of security,” and “Multimedia service”.

Mobile Communication

With the improvements in communication technologies and the increased need for mobile communication among users, the mobile communication industry has been faced with fast-paced developments in the last few decades. The developments in mobile communication technologies provide opportunities that cannot be provided by traditional communication tools. Mobile applications are considered examples of such opportunities. The services offered by mobile phone technologies are diversified by the mobile applications that can be downloaded through digital platforms, and with these applications smart-phone users become even more active users. The current chapter reports findings from a study that employed a structured online questionnaire with 271 smart-phone users. The findings revealed that mobile application use, either free or paid, is explained by the period of smart-phone use, attitudes toward mobile applications, financial cost, and opinion leadership. Furthermore, free applications are more frequently used when the innovativeness increases and the perceived application cost decreases. The results present important outcomes for mobile companies, the digital platform providers, as well as mobile application producers.

Assessing Mobile Value-Added Preference Structures

Globally, the telecommunications industry is transitioning from a business model that relied heavily on voice communication as the primary source of income to one in which data services provide the largest share of revenues. This trend is evident in Europe, the United States, India, and several other countries. However, while data services have been introduced widely, not all countries have experienced the same level of success. In this chapter, we posit that the differences in economic benefit are directly related to the cultural uniqueness of each mobile market and recommend a consumer-centric approach as a potential solution to successful market uptake. Cultural uniqueness is evident in the consumption of high levels of multimedia content in South Korea which is not enjoyed in other economies despite the push by telecommunication providers. It is also evident in the success of mobile banking for the unbanked poor in parts of Africa but western societies have not exploited its potential. In this research, we used Anckar and D’Incau’s (2002) analytical framework to assess consumer value-added preference structures by exploring the market preferences of a developing country which exhibits the characteristics of a telecommunication market that is saturated and poised for data services integration. The findings suggest that all value-added characteristics evaluated had a positive impact on consumer desirability for a mobile application. Most importantly, the findings highlighted that the inclusion of value-added features within a mobile application is not enough but optimizing the desired combination for a user group may be critical.

Justifying RFID Investment to Enable Mobile Service Applications in Manufacturing and Supply Chain

Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) technology is rapidly expanding its application area from simple inventory management to advanced location tracking and supply chain management in a wide range of industries. Because of the potential benefits gained and high investment costs incurred by RFID, firms need to carefully assess every RFID opportunity and challenge to ensure that their resources are spent judiciously. Because of the lack of analytical methods for measuring the benefits and costs, this chapter presents a mathematical model for the evaluation of RFID investment in manufacturing and supply chain. This model provides a basis for the authors’ understanding of RFID value creation and ways to build an RFID business case for an RFID investment justification.

Consumers’ Adoption of Mobile Coupons in Malaysia

A mobile coupon is a new form of sales promotion tool used by marketers to advertise their products or services. This chapter examines key factors in consumers’ intention to use mobile coupons (m-coupon). The authors considered several factors and developed the conceptual framework underpinned on an extended Technology Adoption Model (TAM). The data analysis was based on 781 valid responses from four locations in Malaysia. The results indicate that perceived usefulness, attitude, and social factors influence the behavioral intention of consumers to use mobile coupons. Consistent with prior studies, perceived usefulness, and perceived ease of use were found to be significant antecedents of the attitude towards using m-coupons. The results also indicate that gender, income, and price consciousness are significant moderating variables.

Consumer Information Search and Decision-Making on M-Commerce

This study compares consumer decision-making experiences across two channels (m-commerce and e-commerce), and investigates the moderating role of product type in each channel. Cognitive cost, the technology acceptance model, unified theory of acceptance and use of technology, and social cognition theory are used to formulate propositions. E-mail messages sent by the participants after undertaking a decision-making task on a channel are analyzed using Critical Incident Technique (CIT). Study findings suggest that product type moderates consumer decision-making on both channels. Findings also suggest that decision-making in m-commerce is perceived as stressful. Findings also highlight the differences between the two channels. The chapter concludes with managerial and theoretical implications and directions for future research.

Adoption of Mobile Video-Call Service

The main results from the study confirm the influence of the variables from Technology Acceptance Model –perceived ease of use and perceived usefulness– and of perceived compatibility on the adoption of this service. Although self-expressiveness was also found to be an antecedent of perceived usefulness, all other variables –personal innovativeness, subjective norm, perceived behavioral control, perceived cost, and perceived quality of service– were found to have no influence on the adoption of mobile video-calls. Other important findings are the critical role played by perceived usefulness, the existing gap between attitudes, intentions and actual use, and the role of perceived cost in the adoption of mobile video-call. Other findings and recommendations for future research are also discussed.

Designing Effective Mobile Advertising with Specific Reference to Developing Markets

Mobile advertising is a potentially powerful tool for direct and interactive marketing. Unlike e-commerce, the acceptance of m-commerce by customers has seen only modest growth, especially in Third World countries. The reason is lack of consumer responsiveness. This study aims to propose a hierarchical utility package (in the consumers’ perception) with reference to mobile advertising, thus aiming to enhance its acceptance amongst the consumers. Customization of messages and location based messaging are the strongest positive drivers of consumer acceptance of mobile advertising, followed by inclusion of incentives and self deleting advertisements. Firms making use of the mobile channel as part of their promotional strategies should take into cognizance the perceived usefulness that the addition of the channel brings, and consumer preferences with reference to their information needs. Thus by incorporating the utility package in the mobile advertising format, the mobile phone as an information channel might result in a symbiotic bonding relationship with its customers. Thus a marketer, by incorporating the utility package in the mobile advertising format, can not only ensure its greater acceptance (among consumers) but also develop a leverageable, competitive advantage.

Mobile Services as Resources for Consumer Integration of Value in a Multi-Channel Environment

Consumers use their mobiles phones more intensely than ever before to access core and supporting services, such as product information, games, payments, purchases, and social media. M-services have the capacity to offer new value-creating opportunities for consumers by supporting their channel multiplicity behaviors. So far, little research has been conducted on channel multiplicity behaviors and perceptions, because of a focus on channel choice and channel specific value. In this chapter the authors discuss the importance of moving beyond single channel research and understanding how contemporary consumers use and combine channels to create value for themselves. Drawing upon Service Dominant Logic, the chapter suggests that the mobile phone is one resource that consumers use to create value. Firms need to understand consumers’ use of this resource, in combination with other resources, in order to create attractive offerings. Throughout the chapter, the authors offer numerous examples of how mobile services are used to enhance consumer experienced value.

Mobile Devices and the Self

With increasing ubiquitousness of information technologies (IT), identity issues have begun to attract the attention of IS researchers. While some IS research has examined the interplay between IT and role and social identities, the potential role of IT in shaping personal identities has yet to be considered. To that end, this chapter develops the rationale for talking about IT as a source of identity that transcends the roles individuals perform and the groups they affiliate with. The chapter presents the findings of an exploratory study of 72 young adults’ interactions with their mobile phones, which set out to discover whether individuals’ interactions with IT are a source of personal identity construction. Based on the findings, the authors develop the new concept of mobile phone identity as a product of interacting with mobile phones, and a force affecting the way young adults interact with the world around them. Finally, the chapter suggests potential opportunities for future studies to advance research on IT and identity beyond the context of young adults and mobile phones.