The development of location based services in mobile commerce.pdf

1The Development of Location Based Services in Mobile Commerce1 Charles Steinfield Department of Telecommunication Michigan State University Abstract With the more than one billion cellular phones in the world in 2002, joined by other wireless handheld computing devices like personal digital assistants (PDAs) and pocket PCs, there are significant opportunities for mobile commerce growth. Although mobile commerce enables access to goods and service regardless of the location of either buyer or seller, in many situations the specific location of the buyer and seller is critical to the transaction. A host of new location-aware applications and services are emerging with significant implications for the future of e-commerce. Much like the experience with the era, however, the development of location-based services has fallen somewhat short of expectations. In this chapter, we attempt to provide a realistic assessment of the potential for location- based services, examining the market opportunity, technological origins, likely services, emerging policy issues, and potential future directions. Introduction Since the dawn of the Web, online shoppers have mainly experienced electronic commerce through personal computers connected to the Internet via some form of fixed line. In the near future this may change, as many e-commerce transactions are expected to occur via a wide assortment of wireless and handheld devices (Economist Intelligence Unit, October 15, 2001). Wireless e-commerce is more commonly known as mobile or m-commerce, and, as noted in other chapters in this volume, is expected to develop into a significant market opportunity in the coming years throughout the world. Mobile operators in particular view m-commerce as a critical means of increasing average revenue per user (ARPU), since increasing competition has driven down prices for voice services at the same time that costs related to the transition to the next generation digital wireless infrastructur