Information technology developments of logistics service providers in Hungary

The objective of this research is to examine the role of sector-specific information technology (IT) developments and their significance in terms of the revenue and earnings before tax of Logistics Service Providers (LSPs), as well as the impact of these developments on the flexibility and integration of LSPs. A survey questionnaire was conducted with 284 LSPs participants. The data provided by the 51 responding enterprises provided a representative sample for the analysis of the sample population and the drawing of general and relevant conclusions related to basic population. It can be concluded that their revenue, earnings before tax and degree of integration into the supply chain depend on the sector-specific IT developments carried out by the given enterprise. IT investments will remain important in the future and the introduction and leveraging the best technologies may yield competitive advantages and higher financial rewards for LSPs.     

The role of venture capitalist to enhance the growth of Spanish and Italian university spin-offs

The establishment of spin-offs to commercialise university knowledge/technology is a potential mechanism to promote economic and innovative development. Nevertheless, University Spin-Offs (USOs) are usually resource-constrained, especially in obtaining funding, limiting their growth. Venture Capital (VC) investors play an important role in the financing and the improvement of their managerial skills, which are critical for firm growth. This paper aims to explore both the effect of VC partners on the USOs’ growth and the cross-national differences in the role played by them. To study both issues, we empirically analysed 516 Spanish and 904 Italian USOs created by 50 Spanish and 57 Italian universities, respectively, and observed them between 2005 and 2013. The results showed different effects in the Spanish and Italian cases. While in Spain the presence of VC partners positively affects the USOs’ growth, in Italy there is not a significant effect. This evidence calls for systematic policies by public administrations and universities to foster USO growth.     

Ecotourism as a conservation tool and its adoption by private protected areas in Brazil

Ecotourism in private reserves combines the establishment of protected areas with an incentive mechanism to conserve biodiversity. Brazil's private reserve system is well-established but little is known about its links to tourism. This study puts the global private protected area into context and quantifies the extent to which ecotourism has been adopted as a sustainable land-use practice on private reserves in Brazil. Our findings demonstrate that small reserves do contribute to conservation and are used for ecotourism. The belief that large reserves are necessary for ecotourism and conservation is challenged. Only 4% (n = 45) of the 1182 reserves are engaged in ecotourism, mainly those within the Atlantic Forest biome and these are generally small in size (<50 ha). Reserves provide modest to basic accommodation as well as education and economic opportunities that include adjacent communities. Hiking and bird watching are the most popular activities but many reserves are threatened by poaching and invasive species. The low adoption of ecotourism appears due to a combination of factors, including lack of landowner interest, constraints imposed by regulations, logistics and anthropogenic threats. Nonetheless, there is potential to expand ecotourism within private reserves as 143 further private reserves are located near those already engaged in ecotourism.     

Innovation and performance in the hotel industry

The growing competition in the hotel industry is one of the main challenges of this segment, which increasingly depends on the ability to innovate. Thus, this article aims to analyze the impact of innovation on the performance of employees and hotel organizations. This is an exploratory study, with a quantitative approach using a structured computer-administered questionnaire to 73 managers of hotel chains, located in Brazil, which correspond to 792 hotels. Data analysis used multiple linear regression method with SPSS software to find out the relationship between the factors of innovation (communication, processes, leadership, and strategy) and the performance of employees and hotel organizations. Results show that the factors of communication, leadership, and strategy directly influence the performance of the employees. However, only the leadership factor directly affects the performance of hotel organizations.     

Augmenting the eye of the beholder: exploring the strategic potential of augmented reality to enhance online service experiences

Driven by the proliferation of augmented reality (AR) technologies, many firms are pursuing a strategy of service augmentation to enhance customers’ online service experiences. Drawing on situated cognition theory, the authors show that AR-based service augmentation enhances customer value perceptions by simultaneously providing simulated physical control and environmental embedding. The resulting authentic situated experience, manifested in a feeling of spatial presence, functions as a mediator and also predicts customer decision comfort. Furthermore, the effect of spatial presence on utilitarian value perceptions is greater for customers who are disposed toward verbal rather than visual information processing, and the positive effect on decision comfort is attenuated by customers’ privacy concerns.     

Quality of service and segmentation in the MICE industry: An approximation based on fuzzy logic

This article aims to evaluate the service quality experienced at academic conferences held at the Universidad Técnica Particular de Loja in Ecuador. Our approach is based on fuzzy logic and ideal solutions to calculate a global attendee satisfaction index for specific market segments: Gender, nationality, and age. Current literature on the service quality experienced by conference attendees is still scarce. Our results show that the analyzed segments experience varying levels of satisfaction, and that the more influential attributes to each of them are also different. Our results can be applied to improve the competitiveness of Loja and that of Universidad Técnica Particular de Loja.     

Profiling the segments of senior tourists throughout motivation and travel characteristics

Interest in tourism market segmentation of seniors has been increasing in recent years as the tourism industry has begun to be aware of their importance for the sector. This is a very heterogeneous group, with greater purchasing power and lifestyle-oriented entertainment and enjoyment of leisure time by performing travel than previous generations. This study strives to contribute towards the hitherto scarce research on segmentation in senior tourism. Specifically, this work aims to determine the existence of various profiles of senior tourism by means of using socio-demographic variables, motivation and characteristics of travel of seniors. For this, two complementary analysis techniques, the nonlinear canonical correlation (OVERALS) and a two-stage cluster analysis, were used. Five market segments were identified according to the behavioural variables analysed that allow marketers to target this group in the most convenient manner and to exploit new market opportunities.     

Shopping value,tourist satisfaction and positive word of mouth: the mediating role of souvenir shopping satisfaction

We propose new insights into key satisfaction outcomes for souvenir retailers, such as positive word-of-mouth recommendations, seeking deeper comprehension of overall tourist satisfaction determinants, by analysing the mediating role of tourist souvenir shopping satisfaction. We apply variance-based structural equation modelling by means of partial least squares to a sample of 408 tourists all of whom had purchased souvenirs. The results suggest that tourist shopping satisfaction partially mediates the relation between shopping value and positive word of mouth, while tourist shopping satisfaction completely mediates the relation between shopping value and overall tourist satisfaction. The results and their implications are then discussed to arrive at pertinent conclusions on tourist souvenir shopping satisfaction.     

Consumer Search in Retail Gasoline Markets

This paper develops direct tests for search behavior in retail gasoline markets. We exploit a unique market‐level dataset that allows us to directly measure search intensity with daily web traffic data from a gasoline price reporting website and perfectly measure daily changes in price levels and dispersion. Our simple yet powerful tests provide strong evidence of both cross‐sectional and intertemporal price search.     

In and out of everyday life through film experiences: an analysis of two social spaces as leisure frames

The new information and communication technologies have made it possible to view films in different spaces. Using the symbolic interactionist framework as a frame of analysis, we interpret the meaning of the two experiences of viewing technology-mediated films in the home and in the cinema. We conducted field research during the first half of 2009, digitally recording 16 interviews with research participants living in Barcelona (Spain). The interviews were transcribed verbatim with the help of voice-recognition software. Reports from our research participants indicate that individuals considered only the cinema experience to be a true leisure activity, while the home experience was interpreted as a routine recreational activity. Therefore, the meanings of the film-viewing activity were associated with the symbolic properties of the frames of interpretation. Finally, we discuss the implications of these findings for the home as a unified centre where shared meanings are co-produced by family members.