Young-Chul Shin, Seung-Ryul Jeong, Journal of Internet Computing and Services, Vol. 14, No. 5, pp. 101-118, Oct. 2013
10.7472/jksii.2013.14.5.101, Full Text:
Keywords: Online content, Online game, Flow, Customer loyalty

Abstract

As the number of online game user has been rapidly increased thanks to the recent vitalization of online contents market, not only new business opportunity but also the opportunity to create high profits have been provided as well. However, the increase of the number of online game user and the rapid expansion of the market evoke a cutthroat completion among online game service providers, and also high barriers to entry to online game market have been erected. Thus, what kinds of efforts need for the business success and sales increase in online game market? In lots of researches regarding online contents business, the deepening of loyalty was considered as a critical factor for the business success. According to the study on user's behavior in online environment, users would experience the Flow while using online service, and then, if they were in state of the Flow, they would use the service constantly. High customer loyalty to online game means high will to use the online game too. The purpose of this research was i) to examine what factors enable users to be naturally immersed in online game while playing it, ii) to examine what properties of online game can make game more interesting and exciting, iii) to verify that such factors are critical in deepening customer loyalty, and iv) to suggest some essential factors to be fun and exciting games, on where the focus should be put, and the directionality for the development for sales expansion of online game developer or online game service provider. The research results are as below: First, the involvement and the perceived quality which were characteristics of brand appeared to be factors most affecting Flow. This shows that once game user get interested in online game that user has played frequently, even though new games are released, user will continuously flow the game not moving to new games, and also shows that users not only get more interested but also put more trust in games in the site to where users are frequently going than games in other sites, and consequently user can increasingly flow the game. Second, the compensation and graphics which are the characteristics of contents appeared to be factors affecting Flow. Proper compensation which is given to game users triggers fun and interests in game and makes them flow more and more. And graphics make users to feel game space as if real space and let them flow in game with more reality. Third, challenges, support, and the stability which are technical characteristics appeared to be factors affecting Flow. Challenges enable users to not only experience new virtual world but also solve various difficulties and obstacles. Once users feel fun and interests through this challenge, they can naturally flow games. In addition, the stability of network provides reliability in security and hacking. By doing so, it can induce users to flow more and more. Lastly, when aforementioned characteristics including contents characteristics, technical characteristics, and brand characteristics are organically combined each other, game users feel fun and total minutes are naturally increased, so that game users experience Flow, and consequently the customer loyalty will be deepened as well.

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