The adoption of MP3 technology among college Internet users: A study using the technology acceptance model

This thesis project examined the adoption of the MP3 technology among college Internet users as a means of acquiring new music. The study examined how the adoption of MP3 technology can be viewed through the theoretical framework of the Technology Acceptance Model (TAM) (Davis, 1989). The objective of this study explored user intentions toward MP3 technology and the extent to which the perceived ease of use and the perception of usefulness of TAM can help explain attitudes toward this facet of Internet technology. With the use of mediated focus group interviews and questionnaire data, 31 undergraduate students were recruited as part of a sample of convenience from a local university south west part of the United States. Results of the research clustered around three themes in the technology's adoption and utilization: ease, convenience and cost effectiveness and further analysis proved that TAM provided an adequate explanation in to the practices of college Internet users and the adoption of the MP3 music format in acquiring new music.