Analyzing the diffusion patterns and factors of mobile open source software

Abstract

Various diffusion studies have been conducted on the diffusion of technologies since Rogers argued the diffusion theory of innovation. Diffusion studies are being used as a macroscopic framework for many marketing and strategic studies. Recent studies have shown that since the individual diffusion of new products has both distinctiveness and commonality, individual-level research suits the characteristics of products such as industry, adoption group, and region is needed. If so, is it reasonable to apply the existing diffusion model to the software area? Unfortunately, since many of the existing diffusion studies are based on physical products such as TVs andsmartphones, there are not enough cases of studying the diffusion of non-physical products such as software. Thus various studies in the software area quoted the existing diffusion theory may derive wrong research results. In this paper, we examine the validity of applying previous diffusion theories to Open-Source Software's diffusion through the diffusion data analysis of MOSS (Mobile Open-Source Software). Our findings show that diffusion of MOSS has characteristics of 'Double Peak' and Complex Adaptive System (CAS). In addition, this study investigates previous studies on factors influencing OSS adoption and Double-Peak phenomena in other fields, and researches focus group studies. The results help individuals or companies establish appropriate technology acceptance strategies.