The identification of factors that influence online micropayment use in the news industry in Switzerland

Micropayments have experienced a significant growth in today’s everyday life. Surprisingly, the idea of using small amounts for payment of news is not among the most frequently-used payment modalities in the newspaper industry, particularly in innovative countries such as Switzerland. Apparently, there is still a knowledge gap regarding the manner in which consumers perceive online micropayments to pay for news. This affects the development of micropayment strategies and profit models implemented by publishers, who have experienced a rapid decline in circulation revenues due to other forms of perceived ‘free’ news, such as the internet. At the heart of this issue, one challenging area of research and business interest is to identify factors that consumers consider when deciding to make small purchases. In order to address this, this thesis adopts a primarily positivist philosophy utilising a mixedmethods approach to address the research question: ‘What are the factors that influence consumers’ use of online micropayments in the Swiss newspaper industry?’ Moreover, the study examines how various attributes add to the perception of usefulness and ease of use of such acceptance factors, as well as the degree to which they contribute to the purchasing intent of small payments for online news. A conceptual model based on the Technology Acceptance Model including a set of external variables comprising system characteristics and individual differences was used to structure these influences and analysed using Structural Equation Modelling. Nine industry experts were used to identify additional influencing factors, a pilot study with business experts was used to verify the basic model and methodology and the model was evaluated using Partial Least Squares in the full-scale main study of 262 respondents. Finally, a validation study of eight academic specialists and business professionals enriched the research findings and acted as triangulation to strengthen the results. The results indicate that micropayments indeed play an important role for digital news in Switzerland, embedded in the application of system characteristics. Five concrete system characteristics — compatibility, later payment, single payment platform, mobility and convenience — are found to be positively and significantly linked to the perceived usefulness, with the latter two also showing a strong significant effect on perceived ease of use. Furthermore, it is found that attitude towards the use of micropayments has a strong positive relationship with the intention to use micropayments. The implication of the research outcomes provides strong potential for the practical proposition of micropayment services in the news industry and identifies future directions for creating appropriate strategies for users paying in small amounts. No prior study is known to have been conducted to empirically test behavioural factors that influence the consumer use of micropayments in the news industry, specifically in the Swiss market. Hence, several noteworthy contributions to the literature and to theory were gained from this study, particularly determinants that drive the use of micropayments for digital news. One major contribution is the narrowing down of the gaps in former research investigative factors between micropayments and mobile payment acceptance. Furthermore, the topic of micropayments as an emerging business model for newspaper organisations which can monetise digital news to sustain profitability has been addressed

EBRF 2011 : conference proceedings

Published by University of Jyväskylä, Tampere University of Technology, University of Tampere, Aalto University, Lappeenranta University of Technology, University of Oulu, Abo Akademi Universit

The Industry and Policy Context for Digital Games for Empowerment and Inclusion:Market Analysis, Future Prospects and Key Challenges in Videogames, Serious Games and Gamification

The effective use of digital games for empowerment and social inclusion (DGEI) of people and communities at risk of exclusion will be shaped by, and may influence the development of a range of sectors that supply products, services, technology and research. The principal industries that would appear to be implicated are the 'videogames' industry, and an emerging 'serious games' industry. The videogames industry is an ecosystem of developers, publishers and other service providers drawn from the interactive media, software and broader ICT industry that services the mainstream leisure market in games, The 'serious games' industry is a rather fragmented and growing network of firms, users, research and policy makers from a variety of sectors. This emerging industry is are trying to develop knowledge, products, services and a market for the use of digital games, and products inspired by digital games, for a range of non-leisure applications. This report provides a summary of the state of play of these industries, their trajectories and the challenges they face. It also analyses the contribution they could make to exploiting digital games for empowerment and social inclusion. Finally, it explores existing policy towards activities in these industries and markets, and draws conclusions as to the future policy relevance of engaging with them to support innovation and uptake of effective digital game-based approaches to empowerment and social inclusion.JRC.J.3-Information Societ

Demonetization, the Movement to an Electronic Payments System and the inch towards Full Financial Inclusion in the Indian Economy

There is ever-growing evidence, and importance of Financial Inclusion in economic growth and development in emerging economies like India. However, there is little-to-no information about the role of institutions engaged in digitized payments in accelerating Financial Inclusion. This paper aims to study the effects of the recent Demonetization ordinance, and its impact on Financial Inclusion in 2016, as well as the impact on recent institutional policy announcements. Additionally, It aims to assess the potential benefits of a digitized payment ecosystem and its institutional framework, in response to orders made by the Government of India and The Reserve Bank of India in order to achieve full financial inclusion in the long-run

A Perspective on Electronic Alternatives to Traditional Currencies

The institution of money is rapidly evolving thanks to developments in computer-based cryptography. Technological advances have made possible the creation of cost-effective electronic alternatives to banknotes and coins, which are the traditional physical currencies. This document aims to describe — based on scientific literature — the use and characteristics of money, some of the problems associated with issuing a new currency or a new payment instrument, and the possible comparative advantages of a central bank in leading the way relative to private issuers