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The purpose of this paper is to analyze the adoption process of e-book readers and examine how the perception concerning the advantages of this technology and its incompatibility with consumer values determine the pleasure felt and its effective use. The authors also propose that consumer involvement with information and communication technologies (ICTs) moderates these effects.

Hierarchical moderated regression analysis is used to test the proposed model with survey data from a sample of e-book reader owners.

Appraisal of the device’s reading features and the possibility for free downloading increases the pleasure found with its use and the extent to which it is actually used, whereas attachment to paper books decreases the emotional feeling, with some of these effects being moderated by the individual’s involvement with new ICTs. Pleasure mediates the influence of perceived advantages and attachment to the older technology on the use of the e-book reader device.

Two challenges to practitioners are suggested: to overcome the rejection of users who are less eager to experience pleasure and to use the e-reader, and to find the product’s objective or sensory characteristics that provide pleasure and promote long-lasting use.

The study extends previous studies on e-book readers by emphasizing the need to go beyond adoption intention. It analyzes effective use as a crucial measure of the true adoption of this technology and incorporates the perspective offered by the appraisal theory of emotion, which explains the key role of pleasure in this process.

The purpose of this paper is to examine the dual effect of sensory experiences on customer behaviour in the context of retailing. Based on the theoretical framework of the optimal stimulation level theory, the authors propose that sensory experiences reinforce satisfaction, engagement and loyalty, but increase customers’ diversive exploration and curiosity for other experiences and may eventually led to reduced loyalty.

A self-administrated online questionnaire was distributed via e-mail to 1,000 households in a Spanish town, and 325 usable responses of supermarket customers were collected. The hypothesised relationships were tested using the partial least squares approach. The analysis is extended with an experiment in online fashion stores that explores whether a varied sensory experience reinforces consumers’ diversive exploration. In total, 68 students participated in the study. Hierarchical regression analysis is performed to analyse the results of the experiment.

Findings support the notion that a pleasant sensory experience increases customer satisfaction and therefore their engagement and behavioural loyalty (exclusivity) towards the retailer whilst also generating more ambitious consumer expectations vis-à-vis the shopping experience and thus encouraging them to search for new retailers and, so, to be less loyal.

This research warns of the risk of increasing customer’s expectations and reducing their loyalty; hence satisfaction is not enough. Retailers should consider offering new experiences and surprise customers every so often, attempting to curtail the effect of satiation or the effect of over-arousal.

The novelty of this study is the proposal of a twofold effect of sensory experience on loyalty, a positive effect, through satisfaction, and a negative effect, through the search for new experiences.

University business incubators (UBIs) are born as tools of the academic world to market research results, for the transfer of technology and to promote entrepreneurial spirit. In these contexts, the exchange of knowledge among entrepreneurs can be a key variable for the development and success of their businesses. This paper aims to analyse the characteristics of entrepreneurs' resources and the institutional logic that prevails in the incubator as determinants of the exchange of knowledge, and the authors examine the results in terms of entrepreneurial commitment and the generation of innovations.

The empirical study carried out on a sample of 101 entrepreneurs in UBIs in Spain and The Netherlands.

The results reveals how complementarity, supplementarity and transferability of resources, as well as incubator predisposition towards business are fundamental for the exchange of knowledge, the development of entrepreneurial spirit and the generation of innovation.

This study makes a contribution towards an understanding of how relationships between university entrepreneurs provide access to and help create useful knowledge for the parties, with this resource constituting one possible source of sustainable competitive advantage.

This paper aims to investigate the role of university business incubator managers as drivers of the training and advice given to academic incubatees. Based on the institutional logics approach, the current paper proposes that the dominant logic, academic versus commercial, determines the degree of emphasis on personal assistance, business assistance and networking training.

To test the proposed hypotheses, data were collected from 93 incubation programmes from Spanish and Dutch universities through questionnaires addressed to their respective managers, as well as clients.

The results indicate that the greater the managers’ experience in the business and entrepreneurial world, the greater the fostering of personal and business assistance and networking activities in the incubator. Managers lacking an entrepreneurial profile weaken incubatee access to other business networks and prove less efficient in business training.

This research makes a contribution to the study of university incubatees, showing that managers can be involved in different institutional logics, whether they be academic or commercial, and that the dominant logic determines the activities promoted and, consequently, the success of the incubation process. Business and entrepreneurial experience is key to instilling business logic in incubatees together with the training and assistance they require.

This paper aims to attempt to understand the extent to which the effect of motivations on purchase intention varies for diverse segments of video gamers (depending on their personality).

Information was collected from 511 Spanish video game consumers. Structural equation modeling, clustering and multi-group analysis were then conducted to compare results between segments of gamers.

Results show that hedonic, social and mainly addiction motivations lead to purchase intention of game-related products. Moreover, the authors identify a typology of gamer that gives rise to differences in motivations-purchase intention links: Analysts include individuals who are essentially conscientious, prefer inventive or cognitive and simulation games and whose behavior is more influenced by hedonic and social motivations to play; socializers comprise individuals who are mainly extrovert and emotionally stable gamers and who prefer sports and strategy games. The motivations to play that affect their purchase intentions are mainly social; and sentinels include individuals that are unmindful and introvert, prefer inventive, cognitive, sports and simulation games, and whose social motivations drive their purchase intentions.

There are 2,200 million video gamers around the world, although it is assumed that this vast market is not homogeneous, which has implications for consumer motivations and purchase intention. However, the currently available classifications that address this challenge are rather limited. In this sense, the present paper provides valuable insights into understanding how personality offers a useful variable to segment consumers in the video game industry and how it moderates the effect of motivations on purchase behavior.

The decision concerning the degree of product and service customization is crucial, yet has scarcely been studied for small businesses in business-to-business (B2B) contexts. Although such a decision allows relationships with potential customers to be strengthened, it might involve high opportunity costs given the investment required. This paper aims to analyse the profitability of customization undertaken by small businesses in terms of cost–benefit and examine the drivers of profitable customized projects vis-à-vis the ability to strengthen relationships with clients (relationship investment and customer involvement) and the firm’s resources related to processes and technology (expertise and modularity).

To test the proposed hypotheses, data were collected from 140 small Spanish firms involved in two sectors characterized by the offer of customized solutions: information and professional, scientific and technical services.

Analysis reveals that customer involvement in the customized solution, even when it requires investing in equipment, time or human resources has a positive effect on customization and ultimately on profitability, as the cost of this customer interaction is lower than the revenue it provides. Likewise, supplier investment in the relationship allows for a solution that is adapted to the client, although it requires a cost associated with investing in specific assets. Such costs cancel out the positive indirect effect through the customized solution. Finally, expertise enables appropriate use of the flexibility derived from modularity to satisfy customer requirements, with both being key company resources for driving profitability through customized solutions.

This study makes a contribution to the domain of customization. The authors extend current knowledge on B2B customization by proving that small firms can use their available capabilities and knowledge to achieve a successful customization strategy.

This paper aims to provide evidence of the mediating effect of technological and administrative innovation on the link between market orientation and the economic and social performance of museums.

Building on extensive literature, a model of the relationships is developed and empirically tested using survey data collected from 276 museums (135 Spanish and 141 French). Data are analyzed through structural equation modeling and/ or path modeling.

In the present study, evidence is found to support the positive and significant link between market orientation and the economic and social performance of museums. The paper statistically shows that although the linkage between market orientation and performance is significant, what best accounts for enhanced performance is technological and organizational innovation.

This study has implications for museums aiming to increase their performance and innovativeness. The study suggests that museum managers should include technological and organizational innovation in models of market orientation to enhance the explanations of the economic and social performance. This study suggests the innovation is important mediator.

The paper suggests that museum managers need to consider the impact of technological and administrative innovations on achievement of organizational performance.

The purpose of this paper is to analyse the driving factors of e-books’ illegal downloading and price acceptance from a theoretical perspective that embraces ethical and technological aspects. The diffusion of e-readers and tablets has led to a spate of pirated copies of books.

The proposed model holds that normative and value consciousness, as well as the self-efficacy, the usefulness and the use of the new technology, are determinants of the trend towards free downloads and the maximum acceptable price for e-books. Data are collected from a sample of 227 users of e-book reader devices.

The results provide evidence that individuals are inclined towards piracy when they use and control the technology, whereas value consciousness mitigates illegal downloading and is basic to the individuals’ acceptance of a higher price.

Bearing in mind that the spread of electronic devices has led to an increase in downloads, raising awareness of the norms among individuals is essential if piracy is to be curtailed. In addition, actions aimed at endowing electronic books with value would encourage consumers to pay a higher price for them.

Few attempts have been made to apply ethics theories and the technology acceptance model to the context of e-books’ piracy, and even less effort has been devoted to analyse consumers’ price acceptance in the e-book industry.

The objective of this work is to provide evidence of customer switching intentions as a complex phenomenon involving a series of firm actions – service quality failures, unfair price, low perceived commitment and anger incidents – and factors relating to the purchase situation or the consumer that also play an important role as moderators in the dissolution process.

An empirical study has been carried out in the case of customers of car‐insurance firms.

Results demonstrate the existence of some factors that have a weak influence on the switching intention – service quality and company commitment – and other factors that have a strong influence and precipitate the consumers' decisions – price changes and critical incidents. This study also underlines the moderator role of knowledge about alternatives and switching costs in this process.

This findings show that a continuing dissatisfaction with the firm as a consequence of a quality that is poorer than expected does not influence individuals as much as a change in the price policy or a one‐off incident in which consumers experience a strong unease.

This work provides empirical evidence about the existence of various determinants of switching: variables that weaken the relationship and variables that precipitate dissolution. These categories had already been discussed theoretically in previous work, but their effect had not been tested. Moreover, it advances in the idea that switching intention may fundamentally be conditioned by consumers' level of involvement and their knowledge about other alternatives.

The purpose of this paper is to explore the relationship between museums and their donor clients (“friends”) by analysing the relative importance of the benefits (material and non‐material) that such friends of the organisation receive, their organisational identification with the museum: and their perceptions of satisfaction, trust, and future commitment.

Drawing on the tenets of both relationship marketing and social identity theory, the study develops and proposes a model of the relationships among the relevant constructs. This is empirically tested using survey data collected from 231 friends of Spanish museums of fine arts.

The study finds that positive and significant links exist between: the benefits (material and non‐material) that members receive and their degree of organisational identification with the museum, and organisational identification and certain relational constructs (satisfaction with products and services, trust in the organisation and the intention to maintain a long‐lasting relationship).

The sample is restricted to members of Spanish fine arts museums, thus limiting the generalisability of the findings.

Museums must manage their relationships with members and donors effectively by providing incentives that provide true value. Such benefits generate organisational identification, thus reinforcing the relationship between the museum and its important donors.

From a theoretical perspective, the paper is the first to posit “organisational identification” as the nexus between customer perceptions of non‐profit organisations and the quality of the ongoing relationship between the organisation and its members. From a practical perspective, the study demonstrates the importance of relational policies that promote organisational identification as a means of consolidating relationships with important donors and other members.