Title: Factors underlying personalisation adoption: case of mobile telephony

Authors: Jonathan C. Ho, Chung-Shing Lee

Addresses: Department of Business Administration, Yuan Ze University, 135 Yuan-Tung Road, Chung-Li 32003, Taiwan. ' School of Business, Pacific Lutheran University, Tacoma, WA 98447, USA

Abstract: The advents of many information and communication technologies (ICTs) have enabled firms to personalise products for consumers. Successful development of such personalisation products is the challenge to R&D managers. Additionally, existing products that are shared among a group of users can also be personalised and become individually owned products. This research first defines personalisation as a process, through which products are adopted to personalise consumer goods. Derived from adoption theories of innovation and personalisation, this research aims to explain the adoption of products for personalisation. Using mobile phones as the example, the developed theoretical framework is empirically tested. The findings indicate that some classical attributes of innovations including relative advantage, ease of use and observability are influential to personalisation adoption. Additionally, user disposition, emotional effect and feeling of ownership are found new to the adoption of personalisation. Discerning the attributes of personalisation products and their relationships with consumer adoption would help innovative firms create successful new products.

Keywords: personalisation; new product development; NPD; innovation attributes; innovation adoption; ICT; personalised products; consumer goods; mobile phones; cell phones; relative advantage; ease of use; observability; user disposition; emotional effect; ownership.

DOI: 10.1504/IJSTM.2011.040380

International Journal of Services Technology and Management, 2011 Vol.15 No.3/4, pp.281 - 297

Published online: 21 Feb 2015 *

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