Mobile Policy and M-Commerce

Preliminary Syllabus
Professor Gireesh Shrimali

Introduction
The total number of mobile phone subscribers in the world was estimated at 2.14 billion
in 2005. Around 80% of world's population has mobile phone coverage as of 2006. This
figure is expected to increase to 90% by the year 2010. On a numerical basis, India is the
biggest growth market adding about 6 million cell phones every month. With 156.31
million cell phones, tele-density in the country is still low at 17.45 per cent and the
country expects to reach 500 million subscribers by the end of 2010.

Current projections suggest that within just a few years more people will be accessing the
Internet from mobile phones than from PCs, especially as the latest 3G technology
achieves deeper penetration. This trend is particularly visible in Europe and Asia. For
instance, NTT DoCoMo's i-Mode portal has reached 46 million users (October 2006)
with 95,000 Internet sites. But the US is not that far behind.

M-Commerce is about the explosion of applications and services that will become
accessible from Internet-enabled mobile devices. It involves new technologies, services
and business models. It is quite different from "traditional" E-Commerce. Mobile phones
or PDAs impose very different constraints than desktop computers. But they also open
the door to a slew of new applications and services for consumers and enterprises, which
will likely start generating tens of billions of dollars a year in revenue within the next few
years.

Objective
The main objective of this course is to introduce participants to the new technologies,
applications, services and business models of M-Commerce. In addition, we also look at
mobile policy implications along with wireless spectrum auctions.

Course Outline
• (Class 1) Course Summary and Objectives
• (Class 2) A Managerial Overview of Mobile Communication and the Mobile
Internet
• (Class 3) The M-Commerce Value Chain
• (Class 4) M-Commerce Services and Business Models Today
• (Class 5) M-Commerce Services and Business Models Today
• (Class 6) A Managerial Overview of Mobile Security and Payment
• (Class 7) Next-Generation M-Commerce
• (Class 8) M-Commerce: Early Lessons and Future Prospects
• (Class 9) Mobile Policy
 • (Class 10) Wireless Spectrum Auctions
• (Class 11) Projects due

Structure
The course will be structured as a combination of activities
• Lectures to build a base of conceptual knowledge
• Discussion of business examples and illustrations
The course is expected to be interactive and, in order for students to participate
effectively, they must have read the materials in advance whenever applicable. Students
should freely share their prior experiences that reinforce specific points being made or
disagree with conceptual material.

Proposed Readings
The following will be used as teaching aids
• Main textbook (recommended): Norman Sadeh, “M-Commerce: Technologies,
Services, and Business Models”, Wiley, 2002
• Other textbooks for reference:
o Brian Mennecke and Troy Strader, “Mobile Commerce: Technology,
Theory and Applications”, Idea Group, 2003
o Nansi Shi, “Mobile Commerce Applications”, IGI Global, 2004
o P.J. Louis, “M-Commerce Crash Course: The Technology and Business of
Next Generation Internet Services”, McGraw Hill, 2001
• Articles published in journals such as the Harvard Business Review, the Sloan
Management Review, and the MIS Quarterly Executive
• Articles published in magazines such as the Economist, the Financial Times, and
The Wall Street Journal

Grading
The grading for this course will include of
• Class participation 25%
• Individual assignments 45%: there will be three assignments evenly distributed
through the course. These assignments will essentially be out of cases covered in
class.
• Group project 30%: this will consist of either analyzing the value proposition of
an existing (not covered in class) M-commerce venture or coming up with a
business plan for a new M-commerce venture. The students are expected to work
in teams of 5-6 students (not necessarily from the same section). It is preferred
that the teams contain members from diverse backgrounds. The teams are
expected to form early on and work on the project through the term, with focused
effort in the second half.

Other Requirements
• There are pre/co-requisites
• No software is required
Attendance Policy

If you miss three sessions, you will obtain one letter grade lower than what
you would have otherwise received. If four sessions are missed, you will
receive a letter grade that is two levels lower, and if 5 sessions or more are
missed, you will receive an 'F' grade for the course. The following instances
may also be treated as absences unless permission is taken from the faculty:

− Attending only part of a session, either entering or leaving during a break,

or, in general, arriving late or leaving early;
− Attending another section of the same class;
− Failing to display your name card; and
− Not sitting in your assigned seat

Remember to take the faculty’s permission in advance for any absences

whether excused or otherwise (extreme illness -supported by a medical
certificate, or personal bereavement).