Page 199 - Introduction to Electronic Commerce and Social Commerce

182 6 Mobile Commerce and the Internet of Things

Example: METRO Group (AG) Internet or intranets). This way the objects can both commu-
METRO Group (AG) is offering an application for high- nicate and process information. This section provides an
capacity mobile phones to use in its Future Store in Rheinberg, overview of ubiquitous computing and briefly examines a
Germany. According to their site, the Mobile Shopping number of related applications. (Note: The words ubiquitous
Assistant (MSA) “is a software package which allows cus- and pervasive mean “existing everywhere.”)
tomers to scan items independently, receive current pricing
information and a quick overview of the value of their goods.”
An MSA provides online access to product descriptions and Overview of Ubiquitous Computing
pictures, pricing information, and store maps. It also enables
scanning items before they are placed in the cart, calculating Ubiquitous computing is a comprehensive field that includes
the total cost of the items. At checkout, the MSA allows a many topics (e.g., see en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ubiquitous_
shopper to “pay in passing” by using the MSA to pass scanned computing). Here we present only the essentials that are
data to a payment terminal. For more about METRO’s Future related to EC.
Store Initiative and functionalities of the MSA, see future-
store.org/internet/site/ts_fsi/node/25216/Len/index.html. Definitions and Basic Concepts
METRO has measured the reactions and satisfaction of the
Future Store shoppers. The results indicate that customers are Ubiquitous computing (ubicom) has computing capabilities
more satisfied and visit the store more often than before. For embedded into a relevant system, usually not visible, which
the 2016 mobile marketing guide, see ebooks.localytics. may be mobile or stationary. It is a form of human–computer
com/2016-app-marketing-guide#new-page. interaction. In contrast, mobile computing is usually repre-
sented by visible devices (e.g., smartphones) possessed by
users. Ubiquitous computing is also called embedded comput-
Mobile Advertising ing, augmented computing, or pervasive computing. The dis-
tinction revolves around the notion of mobility. Pervasive
Mobile advertising is growing even faster than mobile shop- computing is embedded in the environment but typically is
ping. This topic is covered in detail in Chapter 9. not mobile. In contrast, ubiquitous computing possesses a high
degree of mobility. Therefore, for example, most smart appli-
ances in a smart home represent wired, pervasive computing,
SECTION 6.5 REVIEW QUESTIONS while mobile objects with embedded computing, such as in
clothes, cars, and personal communication systems, represent
1. Briefly describe the growth patterns of the various seg- ubiquitous computing. In this chapter, however, we treat perva-
ments of mobile entertainment. sive and ubiquitous as equivalent terms, and we use them
2. Discuss the basic components of the mobile music market. interchangeably.
3. What are some of the key barriers to the growth of the
mobile games market? Context-Aware Computing
4. Discuss some of the key legal issues impeding the growth
of mobile gambling. Context-aware computing is a technology that is capable in
5. Describe the use of mobility in sports and in restaurants. predicting people’s needs and providing fulfillment options
6. Describe some hospitality management mobile applica- (sometimes even before a request by the end user is made).
tions. The system is fed with data about the person, such as loca-
7. Describe mobile shopping and advertising. tion and preferences. Regardless of the types of the end user,
the system can sense the nature of personalized data needed
for different environments. In its 2014 predictions, cited ear-
lier, Gartner, Inc. cited context-awareness as one of the top
6.6 UBIQUITOUS (PERVASIVE) ten futuristic technologies, see gartner.com/technology/
COMPUTING research/top-10-technology-trends.
In general, the technology is expected to increase produc-
Many experts believe that the next major step in the evolu- tivity and result in many new applications. Carnegie Mellon
tion of computing will be ubiquitous computing (ubicom). In University is a leader in the research of business applications
a ubiquitous computing environment, almost every object in in this technology.
the system has a processing power (i.e., microprocessor) and For more on the IoT (e.g., definition, history), see whatis.
a wireless or wireline connection to a network (usually the techtarget.com/definition/Internet-of-Things.