Adoption, rejection, or convergence: Consumer attitudes toward book digitization

Abstract

This paper investigates 1) how a tech-enabled change in the form of experiential products (e.g., print books to e-readers) transforms utilitarian and experiential values, and 2) how a tech-enabled change in product form affects the relationship between old and new technologies in terms of adoption, rejection and convergence. A qualitative study of consumers reveals how this change in form alters four experiential and four utilitarian values of book reading. The decision to adopt, reject, or converge is characterized by a system of tradeoffs amongst these values. Utilitarian values are more salient to consumers who adopt a tech-enabled change in form; experiential values are more salient to participants who reject a tech-enabled change in form; when there are experiential or utilitarian values that are not substitutable by a tech-enabled change in form, then convergence (adoption of both old and new technologies) is the outcome. Results are discussed and strategic recommendations are provided for each possible outcome.