A Study of Mobile Payment (M-Payment) Services Adoption in Thailand

The mobile phone has become a common and empowering communication tool, with approximately 6 billion mobile devices currently in use worldwide (ITU, 2011). The rapid development of handheld and mobile technology has created opportunities to use such devices beyond the instant communication purposes for which they were originally designed. Mobile commerce (m-commerce) has become an important channel in today’s wireless society, allowing people to purchase and pay for products with their mobile devices (Zhang & Dodgson, 2007). The advent of m-payments as a service is a key driver behind m-commerce (Holden, 2012). M-payment activity continues to increase, with the value of transactions conducted through handheld devices predicted to reach $670 billion globally by 2015 (Wilcox, 2011). With such anticipated growth, the entities associated with providing m-payment services, such as telecommunication companies, banks, and payment service providers, need to understand the determinants underpinning the adoption decisions of consumers to ensure that they can meet demand (Chen, 2008; Kim, Mirusmonov, & Lee, 2010). There is a growing body of literature associated with m-payment adoption. However, relatively little research has focussed on Thailand, which has a low uptake rate of m-payment services despite a high rate of mobile device adoption (Bank of Thailand, 2012). To address this gap in the research, an examination of the adoption of m-payment services amongst a cohort of early-adopting Thai consumers was conducted. The research sought to identify the factors that are most likely to influence adoption. It assumes that adoption of m-payment services is desirable and will have a positive impact on the various entities associated with the increasing uptake of this mobile transaction. This article presents the findings of this research study, providing some background, a review of the literature relating to m-payment in Thailand and an understanding of user adoption models. The methodology and findings are then discussed, concluding with considerations for further research.