A Study on the Distribution Environment and Consumer Behavior of Smartphone

스마트폰 유통환경과 소비자 행동에 관한 연구

Purpose - Most of the amendments to the law on the improvement of the distribution structure of mobile communication terminal equipment, the fully self-sufficient system of terminals, and the separated disclosure system on the terminals are aimed at securing transparency of the distribution structure by eliminating or reducing handset subsidies. This study investigates what items are important for the purchase of mobile phones in various and rapidly changing mobile phone markets from the consumer's point of view and tries to make a strategic suggestion for future mobile distribution strategies. Research design, data, and methodology - The procedure of this study takes place in four steps. In step 1, only the SF type respondents selected for this study were extracted through MBTI analysis. In step 2, they were divided into three hierarchies for the AHP analysis and each element was arranged. In step 3, the AHP analysis was converted to a Fuzzy-AHP number using the trigonometric centroid method. This was to eliminate the ambiguity of the response by converting into a fuzzy number even if data consistency was maintained with CI value below 0.1. In step 4, the number of converted 2-layer and 3-layer was combined to derive the priority when the final handset is selected. Results - First, the highest importance among the four items in the second tier was the terminal function item, followed by brand, price, and design item. Second, in the third tier, the highest importance was level of after-sales service, followed by device price, processing speed, ease of use, usefulness, and rate system. Third, the arithmetic average of the determinant of the fuzzy function showed that processing speed, ease of use and usefulness in the function item, level of after-sales service in the brand item, and device price in the price item were the five most important factors among 16 choice factors. Conclusions - First, there will be a change in the consumption patterns of consumers who have compared distributors and dealers to purchase handsets with more subsidies. Second, it is highly likely that people will purchase new handsets only when they need to change their devices because they can not receive subsidies by switching phone brands any more.