Quality of experience: Beyond the user experience of smart services

Abstract

With the introduction of smart technologies, increasing attention is being paid to user experience. User experience encompasses customer satisfaction and customer loyalty. While user experience regarding most physical goods and services has been well researched, only little research has been done on these factors with respect to advanced mobile services such as smartphones. This study presents a model for measuring the quality of experience (QX) of smartphone services. It measures the users' QX in order to derive practical implications for providers and to offer suggestions related to the improvement of service. Using survey data, the QX model and its hypotheses were tested, using structural equation model analysis and index calculation. The findings indicate that perceived value and customer satisfaction are two significant variables that mediate the relationship between quality and customer loyalty. The proposed model demonstrates strong explanatory power, with satisfactory reliability and validity. The results of the study provide useful information for the forging of effective policies and competitive strategies by the telecom industry and policy-makers. The smartphone QX model also establishes a foundation for future smart service categories, on the basis of providing a powerful tool for quality assessment.