The relationship between quality of service perceived and delivered in mobile Internet communications

Today mobile network operators offer a wide variety of mobile Internet services to their customers including mobile email, banking, and news services. The acceptance of these services is heavily based on quality of service (QoS) experienced by the user. So far the discussion of QoS has been very network centric and the key to user satisfaction has been the network performance. In this paper we analyze the relationship between QoS perceived by the customer and network performance offered by the service provider. We conduct a lab experiment where network performance variables were controlled. Statistical analysis of the results indicates that there is no 1:1 correspondence or even truly linear relationship between network performance and perceived QoS as recommended by the International Telecommunications Union-Telecommunication (ITU-T). Instead the relationship varied from application to application. We examine several usability factors as potential reasons behind this phenomenon and make suggestions for future research.Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/47946/1/10257_2004_Article_45.pd

A proposed framework for mobile Internet QoS customer satisfaction using big data analytics techniques

In the past few years, the Nigeria telecommunication industry has experienced tremendous growth and changes to the extent that customers find it much easier to access the internet through their mobile phones.However, the growth in mobile telecoms subscribers comes with challenges of quality of service, which lead to fluctuations in customer satisfaction.Therefore, the present study proposed a customer satisfaction prediction model through the Key performance indicators obtained from the objective measurement of the network traffic using extended and exhaustive study of the literature.The proposed framework would guide mobile network operators on strategies to embark on in order to retain their customers within the network

An adaptive trust based service quality monitoring mechanism for cloud computing

Cloud computing is the newest paradigm in distributed computing that delivers computing resources over the Internet as services. Due to the attractiveness of cloud computing, the market is currently flooded with many service providers. This has necessitated the customers to identify the right one meeting their requirements in terms of service quality. The existing monitoring of service quality has been limited only to quantification in cloud computing. On the other hand, the continuous improvement and distribution of service quality scores have been implemented in other distributed computing paradigms but not specifically for cloud computing. This research investigates the methods and proposes mechanisms for quantifying and ranking the service quality of service providers. The solution proposed in this thesis consists of three mechanisms, namely service quality modeling mechanism, adaptive trust computing mechanism and trust distribution mechanism for cloud computing. The Design Research Methodology (DRM) has been modified by adding phases, means and methods, and probable outcomes. This modified DRM is used throughout this study. The mechanisms were developed and tested gradually until the expected outcome has been achieved. A comprehensive set of experiments were carried out in a simulated environment to validate their effectiveness. The evaluation has been carried out by comparing their performance against the combined trust model and QoS trust model for cloud computing along with the adapted fuzzy theory based trust computing mechanism and super-agent based trust distribution mechanism, which were developed for other distributed systems. The results show that the mechanisms are faster and more stable than the existing solutions in terms of reaching the final trust scores on all three parameters tested. The results presented in this thesis are significant in terms of making cloud computing acceptable to users in verifying the performance of the service providers before making the selection

Intenções de fidelização dos clientes no Mercado Móvel Português

Dissertação de Mestrado, Gestão/MBA, 29 de Maio de 2009, Universidade dos Açores.As comunicações móveis em Portugal foram o primeiro segmento das comunicações a ser liberalizado, essencialmente com o aparecimento da tecnologia GSM. Fruto dessa salutar concorrência, o mercado tem crescido, atingindo actualmente taxas de penetração superiores aos cem por cento, com uma dinâmica tal que Portugal foi o primeiro país a introduzir os cartões pré-pagos, bem como, mais recentemente, programas de acesso à Internet móvel para todos os alunos do Ensino básico e Secundário. Num mercado de intensa mutação tecnológica e comercial, a Fidelização de Clientes e os determinantes Satisfação e Confiança são ferramentas essenciais para o sucesso comercial não só dos operadores móveis tradicionais, como também dos virtuais que começam a surgir, tanto mais que, tecnicamente, não existem diferenças significativas na qualidade dos serviços prestados pelos vários operadores. Neste estudo utilizou-se uma amostra obtida pela técnica de Bola de Neve de 262 clientes dos operadores móveis portugueses, procedendo-se a análises estatísticas descritivas e a equações estruturadas. Com esta última técnica foram testadas as várias hipóteses referentes aos determinantes da Fidelização de Clientes, quer directamente, quer indirectamente, nomeadamente Preço, Valor Social, Valor Económico, Valor Emocional, Custos Processuais, Custos Emocionais e Custos Financeiros. Concluiu-se que o Preço e as Relações Emocionais são os determinantes mais importantes na Fidelização dos clientes portugueses.ABSTRACT: Mobile communication was the first Telecom segment to be liberalized in Portugal, essentially after the breakthrough of GSM technology. Because of that healthy competition, the market has been growing, to present penetration rates over 100%, with such a momentum that Portugal has been the first country to adopt pre-paid cards, as well as, more recently, mobile Internet access programmes for all students in Basic and Secondary School. In an intensely mutating market, technology and commercial wise, Customer’s Fidelization and the Satisfaction and Confidence determinants are essential tools for the commercial success not only of traditional mobile operators, but also of the virtual ones that are appearing, being known that, technically, there are no significant differences in the quality of services rendered by the various operators. In this study we used a sample obtained by Snowball technique and including 262 customers of Portuguese mobile operators, proceeding with statistical descriptive analysis and structured equations. With the latter technique several hypothesis related to the Customer Fidelization determinants were tested, either directly or indirectly, namely Price, Social Value, Economical Value, Emotional Value, Processing Costs, Emotional Costs and Financial Costs. We concluded that Price and Emotional Relations are the most important determinants in Fidelizing Portuguese customers

Mobile information system adoption and use: beliefs and attitudes in mobile context

During the last decades scholars and practitioners have been interested in the reasons why users either accept or reject Information Systems (IS). Users' perceptions of information technology have mainly been studied from acceptance, success, or usability perspectives. Although these research approaches have provided valuable information, they all have a limited view. Thus, there is a need for an integrated framework that fulfills the gaps between different approaches. In this study the acceptance and use of mobile systems are analyzed by combining the results of different disciplines. The main result of the study is a new model for Mobile IS Adoption and Use (MISAU). It integrates the elements of technology acceptance, information system success, and usability studies into a single model. As information system acceptance must always be analyzed in context of use, MISAU is based on the mobile service supply chain. The main differences between stationary and mobile systems can be found in network performance and usability of mobile devices. MISAU serves as a framework for case studies in which the effects of these special characteristics on users' perceptions are analyzed. The results of the study indicate that the ever-increasing transmission speeds of mobile networks are not alone adequate to increase the use of mobile services. Perceived quality of service is an outcome of multiple factors. The successful implementation of a mobile IS requires high quality in all elements of service supply chain (i.e. end-user devices, networks, and services). The small size of mobile devices is a serious threat to usability - especially to text entry and navigation within an application. Further studies are still needed in these sectors

Pesquisa exploratória sobre avaliação ergonômica de interfaces de sites de Mobile Banking brasileiras para iphone

Orientadora: Profª Stephania PandovaniDissertação (mestrado) - Universidade Federal do Parana, Setor de Ciencias Humanas, Letras e Artes, Programa de Pós-Graduação em Design. Defesa: Curitiba, 10/06/2010Bibliografia: fls. 149-155Design gráfico e do produtoResumo: A chegada da terceira geração de celulares que, entre outras possibilidades, permite o acesso à internet móvel, está transformando o cotidiano de seus usuários. O acesso a serviços tornou-se ubíquo (a qualquer lugar/hora). No setor bancário o desafio é oferecer o mobile banking (mbanking). No Brasil, os principais bancos de varejo (Banco do Brasil, Bradesco, Itaú e Unibanco) oferecem diversas soluções óveis, entre as quais se destaca a otimização de sites para iPhone. O objetivo desta pesquisa, com base em IHC (interação humano-comupatdor), foi avaliar o design das interfaces de sites brasileiros de m-banking para iPhone com base em critérios ergonômicos e estágios cognitivos. Por se tratar de uma pesquisa exploratória foi definido um método que não envolveu usuários reais e que analisou as interfaces dos sites já implementadas. As seguintes técnicas foram utilizadas no método: a pesquisa bibliográfica, a avaliação heurística, a inspeção cognitiva e a lista de verificação. A avaliação heurística (elaborada com princípios ergonômicos citados na literatura), identificou os principaisproblemas ergonômicos no design de interfaces de sites brasileiros de m-banking para iPhone. Não foram identificados nenhum problema grave, apenas alguns problemas de gravidade mediana e muitos problemas com pouca gravidade. Por meio da inspeção cognitiva foram identificadas deficiências associadas a potenciais dificuldades na percepção, interpretação e operação dos componentes do design de interfaces de sites brasileiros de m-banking para iPhone. Os resultados da inspeção cognitiva indicaram que as interfaces dos sites dos bancos analisados falham com respeito a algum estágio do processo cognitivo do usuário. E, por fim, os resultados da lista de verificação dos bancos analisados (desenvolvida com base nas recomendações da Apple), indicaram que as interfaces dos sites de m-banking seguem parcialmente as diretrizes e as métricas propostas pela fabricante do iPhone. Uma vez identificados os problemas, foram feitas sugestões de melhoria para as interfaces dos sites pormeio de pareceres ergonômicos. Para gerar as sugestões, os problemas foram classificados de acordo com o modelo do processo de design de Garrett (2003). De acordo com este modelo, os problemas se concentraram no plano do esqueleto e no plano da estrutura. A partir dosdados obtidos, concluiu-se que as interfaces dos sites brasileiros de m-banking para iPhone apresentam problemas ergonômicos e de usabilidade.Abstract: The arrival of the third generation of the mobile technology that, beyond some capabilities, allows access to mobile internet is changing consumers/users daily lives. The access to this kind of service is biquitous, that is, anytime and anywhere. In the banking sector the challenge is to offer the mobile banking (m-banking). In Brazil, the main retail banks (Banco do Brasil, Bradesco, Itaú and Unibanco) offer some mobile solutions and among them the customized sites to iPhone are outstanding. The objective of this research, based upon HCI (human-computer interaction), was to evaluate the interfaces of Brazilian m-banking sites developed for iPhone based on ergonomic criteria and cognitive steps. This research can be classified as exploratory, so its method didn’t involve real users and tested sites interfaces already done. The following techniques were used in this method: literature research, heuristic evaluation, cognitive walkthrough and check-list. The heuristic evaluation (elaborated with ergonomic principles found in literature), has identified the main ergonomic problems in the interface design of Brazilian m-banking sites developed for iPhone. It hasn’t been identified any serious problem, only some medium seriousness problems and lots of problems with low gravity. The use of cognitive walkthrough made possible to identify deficiencies associated at potential difficulties in perception, understanding and performance of interface design components of Brazilian m-banking sites developed for iPhone. The results of the cognitive walkthrough have indicated that the analyzed banks sites interfaces fail at any point of the user cognitive process. And, at last, the heck–list results of the analyzed banks (developed based upon Apple recommendations), have indicated that the m-banking sites interfaces follow partially the recommendations and metrics proposed by iPhone manufacturer. Once the problems were identified, some suggestions to improve the websites interface design were proposed by ergonomic reports. To generate the suggestions, the problems were classified under the contextual model of the design process proposed by Garrett (2003). Accordingly to this model, the problems were concentrated in the skeleton plan and in the structure plan. From the obtained data, the onclusion was that the interfaces of Brazilian m-banking sites developed for iPhone present ergonomic and usability problems

The Effect Of South African Internet Service Providers’ Service Quality On Corporate End Users’ Business Performance

The Internet is used for commercial purposes, and companies utilise the Internet to stay competitive in the market. The increase in Internet adoption has led to an increase in Internet Service Provider (ISP) competition in the South African market, with Service Quality playing a key role in differentiation. ISPs are key stakeholders in the Internet industry, and therefore have a direct influence on Internet Service Quality. There have certainly been a number of studies conducted around the difficult, technical side of Internet Service Quality; however, very few studies have delved into the softer side of ISPs’ Service Quality and the evaluation of the impact of this Service Quality on customers’ business performance. This study aims to close this knowledge gap by providing a critical comparative analysis of South African ISPs, and the challenges experienced by ISPs. In addition, this study confirms a Service Quality measurement model for the South African Internet industry, and further contributes to the existing body of knowledge by investigating the impact of ISPs’ Service Quality on corporate customers’ business performance. This thesis employs an empirical, mixed-methods approach through the use of both qualitative and quantitative research strategies. The researcher interviewed top management at ISPs, and distributed online surveys to customers of ISPs. The findings of this research are beneficial to ISP management, and academics aiming to expand their research in this arena.Graduate School of Business Leadership (SBL

Investigating customer intentions influenced by service quality: using the mediation of emotional and cognitive responses in Saudi Arabia

This thesis was submitted for the award of Doctor of Philosophy and was awarded by Brunel University LondonMobile service operators are struggling to build strong relationship with their customers. The Saudi Market is described as a highly regulated and competitive sector. Consequently, it is essential that mobile service operators re-evaluate the level of their service quality and understand its critical factors that influence customer eWOM and switching intention through emotional and cognitive responses. According to the literature review, there is a need for studies on customer behaviour to demonstrate whether customer responses are prominent indicators of how customers feel. In addition, there is a lack of empirical study and theoretical modelling of the relationships between customers’ emotional response and constructs based on other service experience. The main aim in this research is the investigating customer intentions influenced by service quality using the mediation of emotional and cognitive responses in Saudi Arabia. This research develops a theoretical framework that integrates a set of cognitive and emotional response (pleasure and arousal) to examine the influence of service quality on customer intention by using theory of reasoned action (TRA) and stimulus-organism-response (S-O-R), merged into one framework. Therefore, hypotheses are developed to test the relationship between the framework variables. This research adapts a quantitative methodology along with the positivist philosophical approach to investigate hypothetical relationships within the conceptual framework. This research used online surveys completed by mobile and social media users, including a survey with 601 responses out of 621. To analyse and validate the data, this study applies the structure equation model by using Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) AMOS V. 23. The result indicates that there are significant relationships between service quality dimensions and emotional response (pleasure and arousal). Moreover, subjective norms have a significant relationship with customer intention and emotional response. In addition, emotional response has, both directly and indirectly, a significant relationship with customer intention. The overall results of this research indicate that both the effect of service quality on eWOM and switching intention were mediated by customer attitude and by the pleasure and arousal emotional responses. These research outcomes yield several theoretical and practical implications. A key limitation of this research is its data collection by using a quantitative research approach and cross-sectional methodology; consequently, the data collection was done solely in the KSA.King Abdul Aziz University and Saudi Arabian Cultural Bureau