A Web Script-Based Field Evaluation Method to Assess Subjective Quality of Mobile Services

Satoshi UEMURA  Sumaru NIIDA  Hajime NAKAMURA  

Publication
IEICE TRANSACTIONS on Communications   Vol.E94-B   No.3   pp.639-648
Publication Date: 2011/03/01
Online ISSN: 1745-1345
DOI: 10.1587/transcom.E94.B.639
Print ISSN: 0916-8516
Type of Manuscript: Special Section PAPER (Special Section on Information and Communication Technologies for Next-generation Mobile Multimedia Life)
Category: 
Keyword: 
user satisfaction,  QoE,  subjective assessment,  waiting time,  

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Summary: 
Providing mobile services that ensure user satisfaction is one of the most crucial issues for telecommunication carriers and service providers. Traditionally, user satisfaction with the service, i.e., the Quality of Experience (QoE), has been assessed in a laboratory by using elaborate network systems and customized terminals. However, reliable QoE for a target mobile service in the context of actual use cannot be obtained by laboratory experiment, since QoE can be affected by a variety of factors such as environmental conditions and the mental state of the user. This paper proposes a novel Web script-based field evaluation method designed to ascertain user satisfaction with mobile services. The proposed method has the following practical advantages. Since experimental conditions, especially communication conditions, can be simulated with a Web script, such as FlashLite, a subjective assessment can be conducted anywhere using the mobile terminal of the participant. Thus, QoE for a target mobile service in the field can easily be obtained.