Impact of E-Commerce Diffusion on Consumer Purchasing Behavior : An Empirical Analysis of Substitutability of ICT for Physical Travel for Book Purchasing

Abstract

In this paper, we analyze the impact of information and communications technology (ICT) on the lives of consumers as well as the cause for differences in ICT usage between e-commerce and physical stores. One characteristic of ICT is the small marginal cost of distance and data space. It connects people at a uniform cost to and from any area around the world and makes it possible to use mega digital data at a minimal cost. The quantity of merchandise and information of shops are different between e-commerce and physical stores. Thus in this study, we analyzed the characteristics of e-commerce, user/reader in terms of personal and business, and the impact of information acquired from websites on e-commerce. For this purpose, we used a covariance structure analysis to determine the relationship of latent factors affecting the purchase of books from e-commerce and physical shops. As a result, we found that obtaining information about e-commerce shops does not increase the usage of e-commerce. Moreover, the latent factor of essential information that is obtained from choosing books increases the purchase of goods in the real stores. On the other hand, information about reputation increases purchase of goods through the e-commerce. © 2007, JAPAN SECTION OF THE REGIONAL SCIENCE ASSOCIATION INTERNATIONAL. All rights reserved.