Mobile Operator´s Dilemma: An Exploratory Study on the Co-diffusion of Mobile IM and Desktop IM of China Mobile

Author

Hao Jin-Xing ; Xiao Xinping ; Shan Siqing

Author_Institution

Sch. of Econ. & Manage., Beihang Univ., Beijing, China

fYear

2013

fDate

11-13 Sept. 2013

Firstpage

250

Lastpage

256

Abstract

The rise of mobile Instant Messaging (IM) services has been a mixed blessing for mobile operators. Mobile operators are facing critical questions that whether or not to develop operator proprietary IM service and how to develop such kind of service. This study attempts to tackle these questions by analyzing the co-diffusion patterns of the mobile IM service and the desktop IM service of China Mobile Fetion, one of the most successful IM services of mobile operators in China. Results reveal that the mobile IM service and the desktop IM service follow different diffusion patterns and the co-diffusion effects between the mobile IM service and the desktop IM service are both complementary and substitutive. Theoretical and practical implications are also discussed.

Keywords

electronic messaging; mobile computing; China Mobile Fetion; codiffusion patterns; desktop IM services; mobile IM services; mobile instant messaging; mobile operator dilemma; operator proprietary IM service; Equations; Instant messaging; Mathematical model; Mobile communication; Mobile computing; Technological innovation; co-diffusion; instant messaging service; mobile business; mobile operator;

fLanguage

English

Publisher

ieee

Conference_Titel

e-Business Engineering (ICEBE), 2013 IEEE 10th International Conference on

Conference_Location

Coventry

Type

conf

DOI

10.1109/ICEBE.2013.38

Filename

6686271