Assessing the Quality of Wap News Sites: The Webqual/M Method

This paper reports on the evaluation of wireless Internet news sites using the WebQual/m instrument. From initial application in the domain of traditional Internet web sites, the instrument has been adapted for sites delivered using the wireless application protocol (WAP). The WebQual approach is to assess the web-site quality from the perspective of the ‘voice of the customer’, an approach adopted in quality function deployment The WebQual/m instrument is used to assess customer perceptions of information, site and user-oriented qualities. In particular, the qualities of three UK-based WAP news sites are assessed via an online questionnaire. The results are reported and analysed and demonstrate considerable variations in the offerings of the news sites. The findings and their implications for mobile commerce are discussed and some conclusions and directions for further research are provided.