LOS ANGELES-Driscoll-Wolfe Marketing & Research Consulting conducted a multiclient marketing research study on consumer interest in location-based mobile communication services, and identified the location-based services of greatest interest to consumers and quantified their level of interest and willingness to pay for these services.
The study covered consumer interest in a wide range of services, delivered to an in-vehicle unit, a wireless phone or other portable device. The services covered in the study include emergency notification; information services; automatic crash notification; location-based billing; roadside assistance; personal security service; stolen vehicle tracking; monitoring the location of elderly, handicapped, children and pets; routing assistance; traffic alerts; mobile Yellow Pages; and monitoring the location of valuable possessions.
Two focus groups were conducted in each of five major cities. Some key findings included:
Consumers are most interested in security-related services, such as emergency notification and automatic crash notification.
More than half the participants would be willing to pay a surcharge of $1-$2 on their monthly cellular bill to have their location automatically transmitted to the response agency when they dial 911.
Participants emphasized that devices to support these services should be portable, so they can be used inside or outside a vehicle.
Many respondents were concerned about the potential impact of location-based services and privacy. They emphasized the importance of being able to control when they are located.
The projectable portion of the study was conducted in collaboration with NFO Research Inc. Questionnaires were sent to 20,000 members of NFO’s consumer panel. Completed questionnaires were received from approximately 12,700 panel members.
Driscoll-Wolfe said 70 percent of the survey respondents expressed interest in one or more location-based service. The survey also determined the majority of cellular subscribers would pay $2.50 per month or more for at least some of the services.
