Understanding the adoption of mobile messaging services

Abstract

Mobile instant messaging (MIM) is a popular and important mode of communication for a smartphone user who has evolved their behavior from using their phones for voice call and texting to social networking apps and IM apps. Mobile and associated technologies are evolving rapidly and are stimulating related innovations whereas stiff competition in MIM market emphasizes the importance of continuous use of MIM via service adaption to ensure growth and market share. This paper analyses whether the factors extending innovation stimulus in dynamically changing usage context and rapidly co-evolving technologies are available in well-established technology adoption theories and other extant MIM adoption studies. A qualitative exploratory research model was used to analyze prior proposed variables across new-dimensions to find a dominant pattern. The result established a probable gap in the framework. They haven t covered how these technologies allow users to adapt to changing usage contexts and the dynamics of changing social relationships and haven t addressed co-evolving technologies and external factors appropriately in adoption. This research has succeeded in identifying probable deficiencies in extant messaging adoption studies and has highlighted the need for introduction of new variables to extend these theories.