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Top1. Introduction
Mobile technologies and services worldwide are expected to create a tremendous spectrum of business opportunities. The International Telecommunication Union (2014) estimated the number of mobile subscribers at about seven billion, accounting for 95.5% of the world population. In recent years, the use of mobile phones has moved beyond point-to-point voice communications to a variety of content services, among which entertainment services are currently the dominant driver of data traffic. Mobile entertainment is any type of leisure activity consumed via mobile devices (Wong and Hiew, 2005) using a wireless telecommunication network that incurs a cost upon usage and interacts with service providers. Mobile entertainment comprises a range of activities, including ringtone, music, and movie downloads and games. Many nations consider this converging market of entertainment and mobile telecommunication industries over mobile networks to be a new driver of national growth (KIPA, 2005). For example, Bangladesh, which is experiencing success in the commercialization of mobile networks, is striving to develop local entertainment-related products such as mobile games, music, etc.
Mobile operators in Bangladesh have a limited but growing footprint in the value added services space with a focus on entertainment services. Mobile value added services in Bangladesh were categorized into two groups by GSMA Intelligence in 2014: entertainment and development services. Mobile operators are providing entertainment services such as games, music as well as social media, ringtones, and other entertainment services in Bangladesh (GSMA Intelligence, 2014). Convergence among the growing industries – smartphones, the mobile Internet, and third-generation mobile connection – has led to the creation of an emerging entertainment market for mobile commerce. This study considers mobile entertainment services (MES) because this market is rapidly expanding in Bangladesh while still in the developing stage.
The mobile entertainment market is generally characterized by great uncertainty regarding consumer demand (Lee & Chan, 2006). Despite growing enthusiasm and hopes for growth, adopters of MES continue to comprise a negligible segment of mobile subscribers overall, and profitability poses an important challenge in this market (Dredge, 2009). Therefore, to increase business value in Bangladeshi MES, it is crucial to (1) understand what compels customers to adopt and intend to use the services when they are presented in an emerging mobile market in Bangladesh and (2) make customers use the services repeatedly. In the MES business, making customers use the services repeatedly is important to increasing the revenue for the business. Increasing revenue from MES ultimately depends on the factors influencing consumers’ adoption decisions. It is important that service providers develop appropriate service strategies for both potential and current adopters. The adoption of entertainment-oriented technology for Bangladesh has rarely been addressed. As indicated by Hsu et al. (2004), the factors influencing the adoption of entertainment-oriented technology differ from those influencing the adoption of task-oriented technology, which is a part of why this study is necessary. Key to study understanding of MES adoption is the identification of the factors in decisions about how and when consumers will use MES.
The authors propose an approach to assess the potential adoption of MES based on the technology acceptance model (TAM) and the theory of planned behaviour (TPB) applied to Bangladesh. The focus of prior studies differs from that in this study. The emphasis so far has been on the most frequently used mobile services. Okazaki, Skapa, and Grande (2008) researched mobile games by applying the TAM to Japan, Spain, and the Czech Republic. Nysveen, Pedersen, Thorbjørnsen, and Berthon (2005) developed and tested a modified TAM–TPB in order to explain consumers’ intention to use four types of mobile service including game. Kondo and Ishida (2014) examined the intention to use the most frequently used MES (i.e. games, music, ringtones) in Japan and the US through the TAM–TPB model.