Dholakia, N., & Rask, M. (2004). Configuring Mobile Commerce Portals for Business Success. In Shi, N. S. (Ed.), Mobile Commerce Applications (pp. 76-94). Hershey, PA: Idea Group Publishing. http://www.idea-group.com/books/details.asp?id=4282
M-commerce entails transactions conducted via mobile telecommunications
networks using communication, information, and payment devices such as mobile
phones or palmtop units. Geographic positioning and location capabilities are
also being added to such networks and devices. Rather than using general-purpose
browsers, customers accessing mobile commerce applications often rely on
specific mobile portals, or m-portals. These m-portals could be specific to the
device that the user has, to the communications infrastructure provider, to the
financial infrastructure provider, or to other service aggregators who act as
gateways to a variety of mobile services. As the experience of the iMode
platform of NTT DoCoMo has already shown, the ability to connect end customers
and service providers through an m-portal is a key element for the success of
m-commerce. To be commercially viable, such m-portals must attract and retain
customers. Success in mobile portal markets will depend on dynamic strategies
that blend elements of personalization, permission, and specification of
content. This chapter reviews the key differences between traditional e-commerce
and the emergent m-commerce. It reviews the core concepts of personalization,
permission, and content specification as they apply to e-commerce and
m-commerce. The chapter presents a framework for developing effective business
strategies for developing and managing mobile portals.
