Index

Although undoubtedly there are groups who believe that a virtual existence and activity (including online activism) may not actually represent ‘real activity’ (Tocqueville cited in Reingold 1995; Erbe, 2007). However there are clear examples of when consumers have become ‘active’ enough to make a difference. Kryptonite for example almost went bankrupt due to a video being released proving that someone was able to break their lock with a cheap pen. iPod also needed to take evasive action when the number 1 entry on Google’s search engine was a blog about their poor battery life, which attracted more traffic than their official site. This is certainly an aspect of a modern, massively networked environment that will continue and affect the use of mobile Internet in years to come, as this behaviour becomes more accessible and pervasive.

This concept of participation has led to other key changes in consumer expectations, collective intelligence and consumer empowerment (Reingold, 2005; Trend watching, 2007). It seems that the key motivation behind both of these is control. We all like to control our lives and social networks facilitate this through the sharing of information and control against ‘prying eyes’.

Consumer empowerment has increased as we have more information available to us to empower our decision-making, which has and continues developing our collective intelligence. No longer are we in our close-knit bubbles. This means that power and control has shifted away from companies and governments and towards consumer groups (think letsbuyit.com where a group can negotiate large discounts from the manufacturer). The wealth of and discourse generated by Internet services therefore gives consumers the control they desire. This has perpetuated a situation where dialogue and two-way communication is valued by consumers. Choice is also a core component of the web (Applequist, 2007), where companies have to make more of an effort to attract and keep their customers. Information services and social networking sites seem to be the most appealing to consumers (Kerr, 2007), unsurprisingly since these services have particular value when mobile (to find information on the move or as ‘social entertainment’).

As a result of this increase of mobile Internet access, these factors will become more important with the increasing mass adoption of the mobile web. Developing a service like a VW needs to consider these issues along all others. Consumer choice and empowerment should therefore be maximised to make the service as valuable to the user as possible.