What is a Mobile Service?

The terms mobile service, mobile commerce and mobile applications are often used interchangeably, although a distinction can be made. A service or commercial transaction is something that a content provider can charge the mobile user for taking part in, such as news reports , whereas applications are invisible to the user and do not appear on their bill. Applications are service enablers, developed by service providers, manufacturers or users. When a consumer orders a product with a mobile phone many applications are needed to make it happen, e.g., security, certification, and transaction recording (UMTS, 2001).

There is a fine line between m-services and m-commerce but a distinction can be made. M-commerce is economic in nature (Balasubramanian, Peterson & Jarvenpaa, 2002) and can be defined as any transaction with a monetary value that is connected via a mobile telecom network (UMTS, 2000). M-commerce covers services like m-brokering, mshopping and m-auctioning. It can be defined as a commercial transaction where the consumer pays for a service or product with a fee on top of the normal fee for accessing the provider's self-service technology (e.g., call fee). M-services cover a broader range of services, including free content-based services where consumers pay the operator for the call or for the SMS message but does not pay the content provider separately for the accessed information, e.g., checking an account balance. In our study, m-services are all the services that consumers can access through their mobile phone screen.

Mobile services can be considered a subgroup of electronic services. However, the concept of electronic services is often used to denote only services that are offered on the wired Internet. For simplicity, we will use the term m-services solely for those services that are offered through mobile phones and e-services for services that are offered on the wired Internet and are accessed through a personal computer. Other wireless devices than the phone can be used when on the move to connect to the Internet. These are not included in the empirical study. A new conceptualization of e-services vs. m-services will be needed in the future to cover emerging and converging technologies, also in the form of hybrid products.