Title: Are phones fun? Usage and barriers to adoption for wireless data services among the younger generation of Asians

Authors: Laura Armey, Andrea Vladar, Francis Pereira

Addresses: Defense Resource Management Institute, Naval Postgraduate School, 699 Dyer Road, Monterey, CA 93943, USA. ' Institute for Communication Technology Management (CTM), Marshall School of Business, University of Southern California, 444 South Flower Street, Suite 1000, Los Angeles, CA 90089, USA. ' Communication Technology Management, Marshall School of Business, University of Southern California, 444 South Flower Street, Suite 1000, Los Angeles, CA 90089, USA

Abstract: Using the World Wide Mobile Data Services Study, which provides multi-year multi-country data, we find that cultural differences are critical drivers of wireless data service adoption. We also find that age differences drive patterns in mobile data service adoption. Difficulty does not detract from use for younger users who are also interested in fun features. Demand, however, remains driven by usefulness and younger users, who are not yet using wireless data services for work, are less inclined to pay for them.

Keywords: wireless data services; adoption drivers; adoption barriers; cross-country analysis; cross-age analysis; GAT model; mobile data services; WMDSS; cultural differences; culture; Asia; mobile phones; cell phones; mobile communications; younger generation; youth; young people; m-services; mobile services; perceived enjoyment.

DOI: 10.1504/IJEB.2011.040353

International Journal of Electronic Business, 2011 Vol.9 No.1/2, pp.8 - 25

Published online: 24 May 2011 *

Full-text access for editors Full-text access for subscribers Purchase this article Comment on this article