Intangible Services Research Articles

Status review and research strategies on product-service systems

As present trends in economic and population growth continue, the natural environment is increasingly being stressed. More and more researchers, institutes and programmes have paid attention to product-service systems (PSSes) in the last decade because PSS integrates tangible artefact and intangible service to achieve sustainability, improve enterprise competitiveness, and meet customer needs better. In order to respond to the industrial trend towards PSS and frame the related research, the state-of-the-art of PSS research and development are reported. Furthermore, in order to integrate fragmental PSS solutions, this paper proposes a framework for product-service lifecycle management (PSLM) and technologies of PSS development. So, four categories are focused on: review of PSS, research about PSS development, a framework for PSLM, and technologies for PSLM (modular product-service development and ontology-based product-service knowledge expression and reuse). The preliminary solution of the implementation roadmap and technologies for PSLM which need to be perfected is proposed to lay a basis for further development and application of PSS for the benefit of industries.

Identity, demographics, and consumer behaviors

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to focus on two questions that are especially pertinent to international marketers. Is a strong ethnic identity (EID) generally incompatible with a globally‐oriented disposition (cosmopolitanism: COS), and to what extent is the EID‐COS relationship stable across cultures and countries? What roles do EID and COS play on consumer behavior alongside key demographic variables, and how do these relationships vary across countries and across consumption contexts?Design/methodology/approachUsing a sample of consumers drawn from eight countries, this study identifies and compares bases for international market segmentation. The antecedent roles of EID, COS, and the four demographics variables on the behaviors associated with nine product categories are examined.FindingsThe findings imply that consumers are complementing an identity rooted in their traditional culture with one that is globally‐oriented. The roles played by demographic and psychographic variables varied considerably, not only across product categories, but moreover, across country samples.Research limitations/implicationsThe study focuses more on consumer goods and less on intangible services. The sample and sampling approach place some limits on generalizability.Practical implicationsThe results provide insights for international managers into when (i.e. product categories) and where (i.e. locations) marketing strategies could be standardized across national frontiers, and when and where these strategies should be customized or “glocalized.”Originality/valueThe paper makes a significant contribution to the international market segmentation literature, demonstrating the variable impact of demographics and identity across consumer behaviors. The findings bolster the notion that many cultures have the innate facility to glocalize, that is, to absorb foreign or global ideas with the best practices and bond these with native customs. The results further imply that globalization takes on many forms throughout the world.

Achieving sustainability through product-service life cycle management

As present trends in economic and population growth continue, the natural environment is increasingly being stressed. Serious adverse impacts on the environment and human health from waste of electrical and electronic products have occurred in the past and continue to occur today. More and more researchers, institutes and programmes paid attention to Product Service Systems (PSS) in the last decade because PSS integrates tangible artefact and intangible service to achieve sustainability, improve enterprise competitiveness and meet customer needs better. In order to respond to the industrial trend towards PSS and achieve sustainability, this paper reviews the research on PSS and sustainability briefly and proposes a framework for Product-Service Life cycle Management (PSLM) which is a holistic approach to identify opportunities to reduce cost and environmental impact. A preliminary solution for implementation strategy and service transition of PSLM is also proposed to lay a basis for further development and application of PSS for the benefit of sustainability. In the end, the sustainable impacts of PSLM are analysed and discussed.

Moderating effects in consumers' perceptions of price unfairness

AbstractThis study explores the moderating effects of various consumer features – such as price insensitivity and recency of last purchase – on the relationships among perceived value, inferred vendor profit, and perceived price fairness. A proposed model is developed and an empirical study is then conducted among consumers in four contexts: (i) two tangible goods; and (ii) two intangible services. The proposed model and hypotheses are tested using Partial Least Squares (PLS) software SmartPLS 2.0.M3, which provides a component‐based approach for estimation purposes. The influence of these moderating variables (price insensitivity and recency of the last purchase) depends on the context and the nature of the offering. This is a pioneering study of perceived price fairness in a framework of distributive justice utilizing a variety of contexts, products, and services.Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Effects of perceived service fairness on emotions, and behavioral intentions in restaurants

PurposeThis study aims to investigate interrelationships among perceived service fairness, emotions and behavioral intentions in a restaurant context.Design/methodology/approachData were collected from two casual dining restaurants in the USA. The data were analyzed following Anderson and Gerbing's two‐step approach, utilizing both a measurement model and a subsequent structural model.FindingsThis study shows different roles for each fairness perception in relation to emotions and behavioral intentions based on the Mehrabian‐Russell model. Setting reasonable prices and providing efficient services in a timely manner were found to be the key to negate negative emotion. At the same time, the findings suggest that providing high‐quality tangible outcomes and intangible services are critical to evoke positive emotions and eventually to generate future favorable behaviors.Research limitations/implicationsThe data were collected from only casual dining restaurants. Therefore, generalizing the results to other segments of the restaurant industry may not work.Practical implicationsThe results of this study can help restaurant managers to develop more effective and efficient strategies for ensuring fairness, thus resulting in higher levels of customer retention and profits.Originality/valueCompared with previous fairness studies, which have focused exclusively on the role of justice after service failure and recovery, this study considers all service delivery contexts (with or without service failure) in order to provide a richer portrait of service fairness. Also, this study contributes to the services marketing and consumer behavior literature by shedding light on the issue of “fairness” as an axiom for evaluating services in restaurants.

Advances in service networks research

Networks are an important area of study for the services industries. The guest editors of this volume contend that networks are indeed a fundamental feature of services – services intangibility makes service providers heavily dependent on the recommendations of others to direct customers to a particular business; makes acquisition of knowledge about customers and competitors more difficult and often leads to exchange of information through knowledge networks. Fluctuations in services demand are perhaps more difficult to deal with as the ‘product’ cannot be stockpiled, but one strategy to deal with this is to work within a referral network to cater to demand peaks. Services require people to be engaged in their production. This leads to an increased proportion of smaller firms in the service industries because scaling up volume is more difficult with people involved. These are just a few of the reasons why networks in the service industries are important. This introduction to the special issue on advances in service network research concludes that firstly, many of the concepts of central concern for service researchers, especially those interested in inter-organisational relationships, are related to concepts that have been developed from, and studied using, the network perspective. Secondly, there is a need to move to the use of more quantitative techniques for network analysis and lastly, recent developments in network research show much promise in the use of complex systems mathematical techniques to simulate and model networks and the effect of interventions. Thus it is possible to provide suggestions as to how a network may evolve over time and inform those involved within networks as to the relative advantages of alternative modes of action. Overall this collection of papers indicates that there are significant opportunities for further research in this emergent field of study.

Research and Realize on Rental Service System for ASP Software Based on the IPS<sup>2</sup>

With the development of science technology, the purchase in market aren’t just product itself. As a more effective way, industry product service system (IPS2) offers an integration of tangible product and intangible service to meet users’ need as much as possible with minimal resource, there is much achievement on IPS2 in academe. In this paper, the software rental service system for hardware enterprise the information-based manufacturing, the system consists of eight function modules with the platform of IBOS/ASP, and integrates resources of users (hardware enterprise), telecom operator, and third-part software developer to provide customized service.

Rational Drug Policies In The Asia-Pacific

Rational Drug Policies In The Asia-Pacific

The identification and research of product and service innovations: a microanalysis approach

The objective of the present study is to deepen the understanding of tangible (material) product concepts and intangible (immaterial) service concepts as well as the interconnections between them. The study utilises a microanalysis approach and a case study on a wrist computer for athletes is conducted. In the inductive phase of the present study, innovation matrixes are developed to help deconstruct the product concept and the service concept of the case example into their basic characteristics. In the deductive phase of the present study, the interconnections between the basic characteristics of the product concept and the service concept of the case example are analysed based on sources of value adding regarding technology, usage, service and processes.

Demonstrating the importance of intangible ecosystem services from peri-urban landscapes

Among ecosystem services, the various categories of intangible services linked to human perception, such as aesthetics, recreational values and cultural heritage, must be rated alongside tangible services linked to physical processes, such as wildlife habitats, clean water and air, and filter- and buffer effects. This is a pre-requisite for a sustainable development with a balance between ecological, social and economic values. We analyse ecosystem services in areas of the urban fringe of Copenhagen, where the services provided are mainly related to human perception. We employ relatively simple methods in selected landscapes to qualify or quantify the aesthetics and recreational value, and the scale of the welfare economic value of these ecosystem services. In the first case area, the Danish state acquired 50 villas covering more than 50 ha in order to recreate open vistas and gain access for the public to the seaside. In the second case area, peri-urban open landscapes were protected by conservation orders, to maintain and enhance the benefits of green space for the growing urban population. We assess the value – in a broad sense – of these ecosystem services using three practical methods: a landscape evaluation in terms of services and qualities, an assessment of actual recreational use, and finally an assessment of the costs – in terms of residential development values lost – of securing the provision of aesthetic qualities and recreational opportunities. Searching the original planning documents we uncovered the original motivation for the land evaluation and decision. The arguments behind the designation and protection of the areas were primarily aesthetic and potentials for recreational use. The two areas receive annually 2–2.5 million and 400.000 visits respectively, proving their strong recreational value. The value of the demolished houses in the first case area exceeds 115 million €, and the value of the lost development opportunities in the second case area exceeds 280 million €. By combination the three methods, we substantiated that the intangible services may dominate the tangible in cases like these, stressing the need for planners to assess the role and value hereof.

Relevant factors that affect service recovery performance

This paper explores the factors that affect employees' service recovery performance from the perspectives of internal management. In addition, this paper combines the techniques of linear multi-variable statistical analysis and nonlinear fuzzy neural network methodology to analyse data and validate hypotheses. This paper selects travel agents who have frequent interactions with customers and provide intangible services. The empirical finding indicates that the more authoritative leaders have a more negative effect on employees' service recovery performance. Strong corporate culture works against employees' service recovery performance. Employees with high self-efficacy have better service recovery performance. The important characteristic of this paper is that it combines multi-variable analysis and nonlinear fuzzy neural network methodology in its empirical approach. Meanwhile, the factors concerning internal management within an organisation are examined, and measures to enhance employees' service recovery performance are proposed. In other words, these are responses to improve service recovery performance of employees on a preventive basis within an organisation. This is very different from the consumers' perspectives as seen in most of the previous literature. Past studies tend to focus on the amendments and responses of service recovery from the perspectives of consumers, and a vast majority of the case studies examine western enterprises. This paper studies small and medium enterprises in Taiwan and illustrates the factors that affect employees' service recovery performance.

Systematic performance differences across the manufacturing-service continuum

It is becoming clear that management theories developed for manufacturing may not be wholly applicable to service firms. Evidence suggests that economic rents tend to occur at the business level in manufacturing, whereas they arise at the corporate level in services. We address this issue in terms of the characteristics of goods and services, and their effects on the drivers of firm performance across the manufacturing-service continuum. We deduce that the effects are non-linear and vary according to whether products are tangible standardized goods, customized goods and services, or standardized intangible services.

Use and Enjoyment of Intangible Services: The German, Austrian, Danish and Estonian VAT Derogations

When the Czech Republic elected (effective January 1, 2009) to derogate from the standard rules for determining the place of supply for intangible services, pursuant to Article 58 of the Recast VAT Directive (RVD), it was following the lead of ten other Member States. This paper considers four of those other jurisdictions - Germany, Austria, Estonia, and Denmark - and compares their derogations with that of the Czech Republic. In each instance a use and enjoyment standard determines the place of supply for certain intangible services. The affected transactions are (potentially) wide ranging. In each instance non-EU countries are on one end of the impacted transaction. As a result, these rules can easily become a trap for unwary businesses (particularly non-EU businesses) because the traditional proxy-based rules (RVD Articles 43 and 56(1)) are being selectively overturned. Each Member State that has taken this option has (in some manner) limited the impact of their derogation. This article and the article which preceded it have considered six of the twenty-seven EU countries that have derogated from the normal rules. The results have ranged from near full adoption of the use and enjoyment criteria in Denmark to indirect adoption of it in Estonia. The German and Austrian approaches seemed to be the most cautious, and the most targeted. With rules issued in ministerial decrees rather than statute, it is difficult to escape the impression that Germany and Austria see the use and enjoyment criterion on RVD 58 as a tool to correct flaws in the system. PEs are critical to both the Czech Republic and Estonian applications of use and enjoyment, and a similar approach guides the UK analysis although in this case it is subsumed in the in the meaning of a belonging. One might have thought that use and enjoyment would have received more attention than it did in the 2008 VAT package. However, the concern there was primarily with refining the use of proxies, not limiting or controlling the use and enjoyment criterion for determining the place of supply for intangible services.

Russia’s place at global intellectual (intangible) services markets in the context of transition to innovation-driven development

In elaboration of the first paper, the goal of promoting intellectual (intangible) services during Russia’s transition to an innovation-driven growth path is discussed. Three concepts (of three economic schools) of Russia’s innovation-driven growth, which can be implemented in the medium and long term, are looked at. Institutional measures and economic mechanisms aimed at the development of the nation’s science and education complex are enumerated and described at length. The intellectual (intangible) services regulation and stimulation system used in Russia is evaluated.

Use and Enjoyment of Intangible Services: The Czech Republic's VAT Derogation

On January 1, 2009 a minor change in the Czech Republic VAT became effective. A use and enjoyment standard was added to modify the sourcing of certain service transactions. Traditional proxy-based rules, derived from Articles 43 and 56(1) of the Recast VAT Directive (RVD), are set aside by this modification when the customer receiving the services has a permanent establishment (PE) in the Czech Republic. The modification is authorized by RVD 58. This change is a limited adoption of RVD 58(b), and functions like a full force of attraction principle in direct taxation. If caught by these rules, transactions that would have been sourced outside the EU (and not subject to Czech VAT) will be sourced within the Czech Republic (and attract the Czech VAT). In most cases a reverse charge will apply. However, this modification can be a trap for the unwary. After the adoption of the Czech rules the best automated VAT compliance systems were reconfigured. Programming changes were instituted in advance to be effective on January 1, 2009. Sometime in December 2008 the system would have queried the VAT compliance staff about the presence of a PE in the Czech Republic. If that answer was affirmative, then whenever a service listed under RVD 56(1) was purchased anywhere in the company after January 1, 2009 a dialogue box would ask if this service was to be used and enjoyed in the Czech Republic. If that answer was affirmative, then the system would expect to find either Czech VAT on the seller's invoice, or it would institute a reverse charge of the Czech VAT. Without this level of automation (where every RVD 56(1) service is measured for Czech use and enjoyment) it is doubtful that correct determinations would be made in all cases. Errors would be all the more likely if the services were being purchased from a jurisdiction that imposed VAT based on where the seller is established (a jurisdiction that had for example adopted a rule like RVD 43), or where these service are taxed based on a of performance standard (regardless of where the seller's place of establishment is located). Admittedly, this would yield a double-VAT result, but it may be the correct result. The double-VAT, of course, can be prevented (or planned around) but this is much easier done through automation than it is through manual processes. This paper sets out the Czech Republic rules, and contrasts them with rules that achieve a similar result under the UK VAT. In doing this the facts of the following case are considered in detail: Zurich Insurance Company v. HMRC (LON/02/1080) (June 30, 2005); reversed [2006] EWHC 593 (Ch); [2006] STC 1694 (Mar. 23, 2006); affirming the reversal [2007] EWCA Civ 218; [2007] STC 1756 (Mar. 15, 2007). The paper concludes that legislators considering the problem of sourcing rules for intangible services might be well advised to factor into their analysis how this change would impact automated VAT compliance.

Platform strategy framework for internet-based service development: case of eBay

Service industry has grown to dominate a significant portion of the US economy. However, research focusing on service development has not grown at the same pace. This paper focuses on platform-based product development that is increasingly used by high-technology companies in their quest to manage the complexity associated with offering greater product variety. The authors extend platform thinking to the service sector and postulate that companies developing nonphysical or intangible services, such as internet-based services, might also benefit from adopting an effective platform strategy. A platform strategy framework for web-enabled services is introduced to aid management in designing and developing strategically sound platforms that leverage existing markets and core competencies.

Intellectual property protection in collaborative innovation activities within services

The research was motivated by the growing importance of inter-firm collaboration within service innovation, which encompasses the risk of knowledge-spillovers particularly due to the intangible service output. The intangibility of most service innovation thwarts applications of formal legal intellectual property mechanisms. Our empirical study provides data that shows evidence of a direct link between innovation partnering and the use of a broad range of intellectual property practices within service-intensive companies. The results show that informal protection mechanisms partially compensate incomplete formal mechanisms and largely prevent imitation and uncontrolled knowledge-spillovers across the duration of the partnership.

BSC 시스템 구축을 위한 호텔기업의 성과지표 개발

The feature of the hotel business as a labor intensive industry and its heavy dependence on man power is relatively bigger than other industries. the important factors influencing the customer`s decision making are tangible facilities and intangible service qualities. however, the changes in economic situation are also seriously influencing them. So hotels are started to find other IT(information technology) systems. BSC which has been recognized as one of barometers to establish management performance is one of them. The purpose of this study was to develop KPI(key performance indicator) by using the BSC(Balanced Scorecard) for evaluating hotel management performance. This thesis presents customer performance, inner process performance, learning and growing performance as non-financial factors and tries to examine the cause and effect in the hotel industry. Hotels have to know nonfinancial performance which has positively relate to financial performance. To introduce BSC system is not to lead increasing income and bettermenting service quality, satisfacting customer needa for hotels, But to lead developing value enhancement to hotel enterprises and present process.

Do consumers discern innovations in service elements?

PurposeThe success of service innovation programs rests on whether consumers discern the novelties built into service offerings. Hence, service firms must base the evaluation of innovation programs on customer attitude in addition to internal measures. The study examines whether consumers are capable of discerning the novelties built into service elements, and explores the underlying dimensions therein.Design/methodology/approachResearch contexts include fitness centers and auto repair shops in the USA. A list of tangible and intangible service elements was developed based on a literature review. This list was improved through interviews with service managers and a focus group using frequent customers of each service. A total of 34 items emerged, comprising seven dimensions. These items were administered to 120 students who used each service frequently. Factor analysis supported the seven‐dimension model. Finally, a confirmatory study using 527 professional adults supported these findings.FindingsRespondents were capable of discerning the novelties built into the elements of service offerings. The 32‐item scale included seven dimensions: administration, interior facilities, exterior facilities, employees, service core, technology, and responsiveness.Research limitations/implicationsThe representativeness of the samples and the two service contexts, and a sole focus on customers' (versus the firm's) subjective perception are the primary limitations.Practical implicationsOne reason behind new product failures is the mismatch between the service provider's and the consumers' views of innovativeness. The scale provided here can help tap consumer perspective throughout the new product development process.Originality/valueThis study can help bridge the gap between service development processes.

Product‐country images in the arts: a multi‐country study

PurposeThe country‐of‐origin literature has focused mainly on tangible products and has neglected largely intangible services and products such as the arts. The objective of this study is to examine the impact that country of origin may have on consumer perceptions of artistic and cultural products and to explore the variables that explain how consumers form their perceptions of countries as producers of cultural products.Design/methodology/approachA survey was conducted among adult consumers in Australia, Canada, Italy, Switzerland, and the USA that assessed participants' perceptions of 16 countries with respect to their reputation for nine cultural products.FindingsThe results indicate that product‐country images in the arts are affected by country and product familiarity as well as consumers' openness to foreign cultures and home country bias. Countries more proximate to the participants' home country were also better evaluated, especially when the proximity factor played a significant role in the consumption of cultural products.Research limitations/implicationsWhile almost all of the hypotheses were supported, additional research is needed to examine the cultural products of non‐Western and emerging markets as well as product‐country perceptions in these markets.Originality/valueThis study extends our understanding of country‐of‐origin effects in the context of aesthetic, intangible, and complex products that elicit both cognitive and affective responses. It demonstrates that familiarity with a country of origin has a stronger association with positive perceptions of product‐country reputation than does product familiarity, and that openness to foreign cultures, home country bias, and proximity have a positive effect on product‐country evaluations.