Investigating five key predictive text entry with combined distance and keystroke modelling

This paper investigates text entry on mobile devices using only five-keys. Primarily to support text entry on smaller devices than mobile phones, this method can also be used to maximise screen space on mobile phones. Reported combined Fitt's law and keystroke modelling predicts similar performance with bigram prediction using a five-key keypad as is currently achieved on standard mobile phones using unigram prediction. User studies reported here show similar user performance on five-key pads as found elsewhere for novice nine-key pad users

Why young consumers are not open to mobile marketing communications

This paper explores young people's motivations for using mobile phones. Older adolescents' everyday use of traditional and new forms of mediated communication were explored in the context of their everyday lives, with data generated from self-completion questionnaires, diaries and mini focus groups. The findings confirm the universal appeal of mobile phones to a youth audience. Social and entertainment-related motivations dominated, while information and commercially orientated contact were less appealing. While marketers are excited by the reach and possibilities for personalisation offered by mobile phones, young people associated commercial appropriation of this medium with irritation, intrusion and mistrust. In other words, while marketers celebrated mobile phones as a 'brand in the hand' of youth markets, young people themselves valued their mobiles as a 'friend in the hand'. This suggests that the way forward for mobile marketing communications is not seeking or pretending to be young consumers' friend, butrather offering content that helps them maintain or develop the personal friendships that matter to them

Delivering 3D advertising to mobile phones.

Directing advertising to mobile phones currently is limited to commercial text messages, short-code text-back messages, two dimensional (2D) images, or wireless access protocol (WAP) clickable push links. All of these traditional methods do not facilitate advertising approach were consumers can interact with prospective purchases. In this paper we introduce a novel and highly interactive location- and permission-based advertising system that allows 3D product adverts to be displayed on users' mobile phones. The paper provides a thorough discussion of the system covering its performance, implementation structure, platform-dependent optimizations and suggestions for future work. With mobile phones and 3D interactive tools, advertising becomes more engaging, rewarding and entertaining and provides marketing executives with new means of directing their campaigns to a more specific target audience

The Impact of Mobile Phones on Indigenous Social Structures: A Cross-cultural Comparative Study

Mobile phones are part of a major growth industry in so-called Third World countries. As in other places, the use of this technology changes communication behaviour. The influence of these changes on indigenous social structures was investigated with a mixed-type questionnaire that targeted parameters such as: in-group vs. out-group communication, involvement with dominant industrial culture and the use of financial resources. Data was collected from indigenous representatives at the United Nations, as well as in Africa from subjects of various cultural backgrounds, and from a control group in Berlin. The results reflect widespread use of mobile phones among indigenous persons, having a segregating effect within the indigenous community, but also enhancing ingroup communication and especially the use of the indigenous language. Mobile phones also facilitate moves from village to town, with the opportunity of frequently communicating with other in-group members

Health Phones: A Potential Game Changer in Health Information Management

Health education has to be one of the most effective ways to reduce morbidity and mortality in developing countries. We need to deliver vital messages and information to people at the lower quarter of the society to use changing behaviour and practices which can save and protect their lives. It is in this context, use of mobile phones in delivering vital health information is of significance. This article reviews few projects which successfully use mobile phones for health information delivery

The Phone Walkers: A study of human dependence on inactive mobile devices

The development of mobile phones has largely increased human interactions. Whilst the use of these devices for communication has received significant attention, there has been little analysis of more passive interactions. Through census data on casual social groups, this work suggests a clear pattern of mobile phones being carried in people's hands, without the person using it (that is, not looking at it). Moreover, this study suggests that when individuals join members of the opposite sex there is a clear tendency to stop holding mobile phones whilst walking. Although it is not clear why people hold their phones whilst walking in such large proportions (38% of solitary women, and 31% of solitary men), we highlight several possible explanation for holding the device, including the need to advertise status and affluence, to maintain immediate connection with friends and family, and to mitigate feelings related to anxiety and security.Comment: To appear in "Behaviour". 21 pages; 7 figures; Appendix in journal version onl

Use of Mobile Phones for Information Dissemination among Fish Marketers: Evidence from Kogi State, Nigeria

The study evaluated the use of mobile phones for information dissemination among fish marketers in Kogi State, Nigeria. The specific objectives are to identify the frequency of use of mobile phones for information dissemination among fish marketers, identify the relevance of mobile phones in fish marketing, determine the effect of selected socioeconomic variables on the use of mobile phone for fish marketing, and identify the constraints to the use of mobile phones for fish marketing. One hundred and twenty-five (125) fish marketers were selected from five (5) major markets in the State. These markets are: Anyigba, Itobe, Lokoja, Okene and Bagana. Data obtained were analysed using descriptive statistics, logit model and mean score from a Likert scale. Results showed that 78.4% of the marketers used mobile phones for fish marketing, while 21.6% of the marketers never used mobile phones for fish marketing. 59.2% and 19.2% of the marketers occasionally and frequently used mobile phones for fish marketing respectively. Annual income, marketing experience and cost of mobile phones significantly influence the likelihood of the use of mobile phones for fish marketing at 5% with cost of mobile phones been inversely related to the use of mobile phones. Fish marketers were constrained with low quality of services provided (M=4.44), inadequate extension contact (M=4.41), high level of illiteracy (M=4.31), inadequate capital (M=4.00), and inadequate electricity supply (M=3.93) in the use of mobile phones for fish marketing. The study recommended that government should enforce the installation of more GSM masts in rural areas with a view to improve the erratic and poor services experienced in rural communities. Also, there is need for further extension services to enlighten marketers on the relevance of mobile phones in fish marketing in order to increase the frequency of use of this technology for information dissemination. Keywords: Information, Marketing, Mobile Phones, Relevance, Use

Using persuasive marketing methods and mobile phones as active learning devices to enhance students’ learning

One of the latest additions to the educator’s toolbox are learning parcels sent to the students’ mobile phones. We used a four factor sales and marketing model from previous research to produce and evaluate the contents of the learning parcels and the mobile phone concept. The four factors are: Relevance, timeliness, responsibility and value. In an action research program during the first semester of 2015, we tested to which degree the students felt their curriculum knowledge improved through the use of learning parcels on their mobile phones. We learned that the novelty effect of using mobile phones as a medium quickly evaporated. The use of the learning parcels depends to a high degree on the instant feeling of high usefulness in relation to the four factors and is decisive for students’ use of the learning parcels and the concept as such. A significant number of the students liked the concept, and were sure of its positive learning outcome