Factors influencing the usage of mobile phones in east asia: A comparative study based on the asian metropolitan mobile survey

This paper explores similarities and differences in mobile phone usage between subscribers from five major metropolitan cities across East Asia. Technological advances have been widely adopted by consumers throughout this region, most recognizably via the mobile platform with mobile Internet, email, video-conferencing, e-commerce, and other types of mobile phone-related services becoming critical factors in the daily lives of East Asian consumers. Those living in urban areas have benefited most from these new technologies and services, and more specifically, younger generations have adopted mobile phone-related services far faster than their older counterparts. However little research to date has explored the similarities and differences between mobile phone usage behavior of younger, urban consumers across this region. This paper presents the results of a comparative study of mobile consumer behavior of university students across five major cities including Beijing, Hong Kong, Seoul, Taipei and Tokyo. We found that the dependency of young people on mobile phone services was similar among the cities surveyed, however the specific factors influencing their usage and the communications technologies that they used varied significantly across markets.