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The implementation of information kiosks in Singapore: an exploratory study
International Journal of Information Management 19 (1999) 237}252
The implementation of information kiosks in Singapore: an exploratory study Lai Lai Tung* Information Management Research Centre, Rm. No. S3-016-56, School of Accountancy and Business, Nanyang Technological University, Nanyang Avenue, Singapore: 639798, Singapore
Abstract Information kiosks are machines that can disseminate information, handle transactions or perform both functions. For the purpose of our study, these kiosks are classi"ed into four di!erent types of information kiosks with respect to the functions that they perform. These four types of kiosks are basic information kiosks, high transactional kiosks, high information dissemination kiosks and high-end kiosks. Interviews with companies that have implemented such kiosks will shed light into the motivations behind "rms that have implemented such information kiosks as well as the "rms' consideration and bene"ts derived. Notes taking were used during interview sessions with "rms. Based on the results of our analysis, we recommend to "rms that intend to implement information kiosks that they should carry out more publicity as most people indicated that they would respond positively to publicity of the machines. Also, they should install signboards near the kiosks so those users can "nd the places of kiosks and identify the locations more easily. Others include the inclusion of other languages and provision of more privacy features. Finally, we list down some factors of consideration for "rms that are considering setting up kiosks. 1999 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved. Keywords: Information kiosks; Electronic commerce; Information technology implementation
1. Introduction An information kiosk has been de"ned as a computer-based information access point with features designed to make it suitable for the general public (Sargent & McLvor, 1996; Corcoran,
* Tel.: #65-7905727; fax: #65-7922313. E-mail address: [email protected] (L.L. Tung) 0268-4012/99/$ - see front matter 1999 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved. PII: S 0 2 6 8 - 4 0 1 2 ( 9 9 ) 0 0 0 1 6 - X
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1994). Today's information kiosk uses a multimedia PC that is housed in a close-"tting casing (Shepherdson, 1994). Placed in public areas or exhibitions, interactive kiosks are increasingly being used to disseminate, access, process and collect information and/or perform transaction ("nancial or non-"nancial) (Geer, 1994; Noack, 1994). Usually, these kiosks are highly interactive, easy to use and produced #ashy interactive multimedia information (Bender, 1994; Garber, 1994). Kiosks are usually operational 24 hours, and are not manned by human operator. They are strategically positioned at places with high human tra$c e.g. shopping malls, transportation hubs, o$ce complexes, etc. in order to maximize the number of people who can access it (see Ballou, 1994; Betts, 1994a, b; Bredin, 1992). Broadly, most information kiosks in Singapore can be grouped into four groups which varies along two dimensions}information dissemination (low vs. high) capabilities and transactional capabilities (low vs. high) (Tung & Tan, 1998) (see Fig. 1 below which is adapted from Tung and Tan, 1998). Low-information dissemination kiosk means that the information provided requires infrequent changes or updates and has structured query, usually guided by screen buttons. Highinformation dissemination kiosk requires frequent changes to the information provided to users and users can perform semi-structured query, usually via through a keyboard. Low transaction capability kiosk performs no transaction at all or it just accepts money during the transaction, e.g. car park kiosk. High transaction capability kiosks on the other hand enable users to access and update on-line databases on top of their transaction that may require personal identi"cation. With these de"nitions, the model in Fig. 1 below shows four types of kiosks.
Fig. 1. Model depicting the various types of kiosks in Singapore. 1. 2. 3. 4.
Customize a greeting card. Limited querying capabilities, no updating of database. Perform semi-structured query of what train/bus service to get to a destination of your choice. Farecard top-up by debiting ATM (automated teller machine) account} bank database updated. Perform government related services (querying and database update) 24 h a day.
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In Singapore, the kiosks that have been set up are used to disseminate information and/or handle certain transactions. Unlike in the United States, there is no kiosk that is purely for retail research (Schneider, 1995), although a few kiosks can perform survey on users by asking a few simple questions and having the users keying-in the answers.
2. Importance and objectives of research Information kiosk is a new technology in Singapore. Banks have access to such technology way back in the 1980s in the form of ATMs, but for the non-bank organizations, they only get hold of the technology in the last few years. This explains why there are relatively few companies that have implemented kiosks in Singapore. The kiosks of the future are likely to incorporate more interesting features to make them more attractive so as to entice people to try them (Garber, 1994; Fensholt, 1994; Chandler, 1992). The technology will most probably be there as technology from the US is being improved all the time. No company will want their machines to be white elephants (Wiesendanger, 1991; O'Hara, 1994). With more advanced systems in the market, companies which are contemplating the implementation of kiosks are likely to introduce more interesting machines in the foreseeable future (Jensen, 1994; Ingram, 1993; DeNitto, 1994). In addition, as the technology becomes more widely available (Friedman, 1994), more companies are expected to join in (Fitzgerald, 1994). The companies that have set up kiosks can de"nitely serve as a kind of test-run for the other companies that are still adopting a wait-and-see attitude. Once the other companies are assured of the success of such programs, they are likely to start setting their machines (Scha!er, 1994; Betts, 1994a). Thus, it is important that these companies which are contemplating setting up their machines learn from those who already have done so. This research will gather some of the necessary information for the former group of companies. There has been no previous study on the implementation of kiosks in Singapore. Because of the small number of "rms that have implemented kiosks in Singapore and the highly sensitive nature of the information regarding their implementation, this study is only an exploratory study of six "rms that have done so. Although the sample size does not yield itself to statistical interpretation, we hope that the semi-open interviews will unveil rich information regarding their implementation otherwise unavailable to surveys. The research objectives of this study are threefold: to "nd the motivations of "rms in setting up kiosks, the advantages derived and the problems encountered by them in the implementation. Summary of research objectives 1. Objectives in setting up information kiosks }Motivations of local "rms in setting up information kiosks 2. Bene"ts that "rms derived }The bene"ts that "rms have derived from implementing information kiosks 3. Problems encountered while undertaking the project }The problems "rms faced during and after implementation
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Table 1 Summary of bene"ts and problems to organisations Bene"ts of kiosks
Problems encountered
Provide publicity of the companies
Customers' resistance to the new technology
Enable di$cult-to-reach prospects to gain access to information about the company, its products and services. Help to increase sales via: E another avenue of doing business E doing of business after o$ce hours E increasing awareness of companies' products and services Help to relieve manpower shortage or reduce manpower use
Poor system design which means a need for frequent changes Poor support and maintenance of kiosks by retailers whose premises the machines are located
Inappropriate locations of kiosks which a!ect usage of the machines
Generate revenue from advertisements placed on kiosks and lease of space
The motivations of "rms in implementing information kiosks are interesting because the results will indicate the extent the original objectives of the organizations were met. It can provide us with greater insights into the extent of success or failure of the "rms that have implemented kiosks. Also, by investigating the advantages derived from kiosks' implementation in Singapore, we can gauge whether local xrms have capitalized on the potential benexts that kiosks would be able to provide. Table 1 presents the results of a literature review on the bene"ts and problems of kiosks to organizations from which we can make comparisons. As for investigating the problems encountered on the implementation of kiosks, our objective is to use the results derived as a basis for us to make some recommendations to "rms that are considering the implementation of information kiosks. As for "rms that had implemented information kiosks, hopefully, this will help them improve their services.
3. Research design and methodology 3.1. Selection of xrms Interviews with the companies' personnel in charge of or involved in the implementation of information kiosks were conducted. Our intention was to interview all "rms whose kiosks are more common and widely located. Telephone calls were initially made to enquire about the o$cers who can provide the relevant information regarding the topic. Formal letters are then sent to the o$cers concerned to request for interview appointments with tentative dates being stated. A list of the topics or questions related to the interview was also sent so as to let the o$cers concerned aware of the issues involved. Following the process, telephone calls are then made to con"rm with the o$cers the appointment dates or to re-schedule the appointments.
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3.2. Design of the interview The interviews conducted were unstructured and informal. This was so as to provide the breadth and depth of the topic asked, and also to provide the interviewers with greater insights when doing their analysis. Questions were "rst formulated based on the objectives desired before conducting the interviews. The questions were only used as an interview guide to channel discussions into the desired topic and were customised during the interviews to suit the individual "rms. 3.3. The interview process The duration of each interview was about half an hour with 10 min of allowances. To ensure clarity and accuracy of the information gathered, further questions were asked during the interviews. One member of the team served as the interviewer while the other member served as the secretary. This was to ensure that there was vital eye contact and thus built rapport between the interviewer and interviewee(s). It also enabled the interviewer to pay attention and give considerations to the interviewee's feelings and opinion. At the end each interview, a summary of the information gathered during the interview was communicated to the interviewee to ensure that there was no misunderstanding and miscommunication between both parties.
4. Research questions Speci"cally, the research questions are: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5.
What are the reasons for setting up these machines? What are the factors considered when setting up the machine, including their design? How do the "rms go about implementing such machines? Had the "rms conducted any research before implementing the machines? Had the "rms taken any steps to promote public awareness of the machines that they have implemented? 6. What are the costs incurred? 7. What are the problems that are encountered in the process of implementation? 8. What are the bene"ts derived?
5. Results of interviews with 5rms A total of eight "rms were contacted for the purpose of our research. Out of these eight "rms, six of them participated in this interview. The "rms that had participated were: E NTUC Income Insurance Co-Operative Ltd E Cosdel (S) Pte Ltd (agent of Hallmark Card)
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Singapore Telecommunications Ltd Singapore Bus Service Pte Ltd Development Bank of Singapore Ltd Singapore Post Ltd
5.1. NTUC Income Insurance Co-Operative Ltd NTUC Income is an insurance co-operative founded in Singapore. Its objective is to provide a!ordable insurance coverage to the population in Singapore. The "rm has expanded tremendously over the past 20 yr. In its move to reach out more e!ectively to the public and also due to the feasibility of technology, it has set up a kind of kiosk called NTUC Income information booth. The NTUC Income information booths are basically used to provide information on the products and services o!ered by NTUC Income besides other media like newspapers, magazines, and television. They basically show the various types of insurance policies o!ered by NTUC Income, the bene"ts of becoming members of NTUC Income, and the highlights of the activities organised by the "rm. They even include various job positions o!ered by the "rm. Presently, there are a total of 15 information booths implemented island-wide. These booths are mostly located in supermarkets and shopping centres where there are high human tra$c. This is to ensure that the usage rate is high enough to justify the costs of setting up the machines there. Mr. Frederick Chan, an executive in the marketing department of NTUC Income, said that user friendliness is a very important consideration to ensure that the machines are simple to use so that users will not feel frustrated in using the booths. Also, the machines are designed in such a way that it is easy for users to terminate an option halfway if he or she desires and then to switch to another option quickly. Initially, the booths are not very user friendly or ergonomically e$cient, but now the design has improved. According to Mr. Chan, there were more than 430,000 people who have accessed the booth till date. Mr. Chan said that no research has been conducted on the public before the machine was introduced. The hardware that is used was bought from Philips and a multimedia company has been engaged to develop the machines. Although there are advertisements placed in the newspapers, it is not very frequent. One bene"t that the "rm has derived is that there are more enquiries from people or users about the "rm's insurance policies. It has contributed to the increase in the sales of the insurance products but the e!ect are di$cult to quantify. Mr. Chan also revealed that the cost of each booth was about S$10,000 and the overall maintenance cost per annum is about S$80,000. A vendor undertook the maintenance project. Some of the problems that were encountered by the "rm are as follows: Firstly, some of these machines are prone to damage due to shifting of the machines in and out of the supermarkets. However, in general, the machines are in good conditions. There are not many cases of vandalism. According to Mr. Chan's records, there had been one case of vandalism that was when somebody had spilled his drink on the machine. Secondly, sometimes the touch screen feature of the machine can lose its sensitivity. As a result, there can be no response to the user's commands. Lastly, some machines &hanged' when they
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are being shifted as the processors are damaged. Thus, they would also not react to the users' inputs. 5.2. Cosdel (S) Pte Ltd (Agent of Hallmark Card) Hallmark Card is the largest greeting cards maker in the United States. Cosdel Pte Ltd, which was contacted for our survey, is an agent of Hallmark Card in the distribution and marketing of the products. From the interview with Cosdel, the objective that was cited by Mr. Charles Wee, the sales and marketing manager, for the implementation of the TSG machine is that Hallmark wants to make the buying of greeting cards a personalised experience for customers. It must add more things to the process of choosing and buying greeting cards (Fitzgerald, 1994). And it is hoped that the introduction of information technology can be made use of to enhance the experience of customers in buying Hallmark cards. Due to the above-mentioned reason, TSG machines are set up to make use of the existing technology to help Hallmark achieve its objective. The company identi"ed that there will be an increasing trend of people using information technology and computers for their shopping in the future; hence, by introducing the TSG machines now, it hopes to get customers to accept its machines earlier. The TGS machines are imported from Hallmark USA and can be set up in non-traditional outlet, not only in bookshops and giftshops. Mr. Wee said that these machines are especially useful for shops without enough space to put up shelves for displaying cards. The machines can provide another avenue for selling Hallmark Cards. Mr. Wee also said that as there are usually high development costs involved with the implementation of these machines, there is a need to ensure that there is high volume to generate more margins to cover cost and earn a pro"t. Hence, the "rm needs to set up these machines at places with large clientele or where tra$c is high. In addition, shops where there is no space for large "xtures are another choice. Generally, the designs of cards from the machines are di!erent from those of traditional cards. Due to the limitations of the machines and the printers, the designs of the cards cannot be too complicated. Also, recycled papers are used for these cards. CD Roms are chosen as a medium of storage because they can store the high volume of data required. It is also more e$cient. User friendliness of the machines is a major factor of consideration so as to make the buying of cards by using the machines a pleasant experience for customers. Mr. Wee said that although no research was conducted before these machines were implemented, they have received good responses and comments from the public so far. There were only a few promotions undertaken so far. One was at Marina Square on 1}7 November 1995 while another was held at Isetan on 14 February 1995. There was also some publicity by newspaper articles on the machines. Mr. Wee revealed that the cost of each machine was about S$15,000}S$20,000, but he gave no details on the maintenance and operating costs. A problem that was encountered after implementation is that some customers took cards without paying, as the store assistants do not always have the time to oversee users of the machine. Mr. Wee also revealed that the users had commented that they found the machines very interesting and innovative. It is another way of buying cards.
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5.3. Singapore Telecommunications Ltd The objectives of Singapore Telecommunications Limited in setting up the Teleview Public Terminals are as follows: Firstly, the "rm hopes to earn revenue through sponsorship of the public terminals. It also hopes to create public awareness of Teleview to the general public and students in educational institutes and libraries. Another objective is to facilitate Teleview users in accessing Teleview at public places. This also enables the "rm to provide another advertising media to sponsors. To be able to motivate potential sponsors, sponsors not only enjoy exclusiveness in the display of information but the "rm also gives them attractive incentives so that the costs can be more competitively compared to the costs for outdoor advertising. The "rm provides ten advertising carousel frames to the sponsors with no creation costs. More discounts are given to the sponsors when they sponsor more terminals. It also hopes that there are no maintenance costs to the sponsors. In addition, the sponsors are not required to bear the costs of telephone line installations and phone bills. Furthermore, there is no need for the sponsors to have a sta! to liaise frequently with Teleview except at the time of set up. Since there is no requirement of permanent sta!, there is saving of labour costs. The factors that were considered for setting up the booth are as follows: The "rst consideration involved the sponsors. The "rm let the sponsors agree on the location of the terminals to match the market segment of their products. Hence, the site location must have high tra$c. The site location is usually an institute of learning and must be safe from vandalism. The site location must serve as a penetration of Teleview into the residential and business sectors. The next consideration is the physical design of the machine. It must be shock proof and water proof to prevent misuse and vandalism. Also, the shape, besides being attractive and colourful, should be able to accommodate the standard desktop Central Processing Unit (CPU) with cable connected to the monitor in the upper section. The height should be comfortable for the average person and the monitor is placed at an inclination that is convenient to read and it should be antiglare to prevent disruption to reading. In addition, it should be transportable in a van and should not be too heavy for any two persons to carry. The casing should be hard plastic and scratch proof. The CPU, keyboard and monitor should be protected from theft and damage during usage and transportation. The casing should be well ventilated with a fan but prevented from pest to enter. Lastly, a public terminal (PT) software has to be developed and maintained to run the carousel frames. The bene"t derived from the PTs to Teleview is that it creates awareness of Teleview to students and also the general public. The public can try out Teleview and become interested to subscribe. However, the interviewee wished to keep its cost con"dential. Generally, the public has found the PTs useful and bene"cial. There is no consistent pattern of access, various data are accessed by di!erent users at various PT sites. To date, a total of 114 machines have been set up. Singapore Telecoms will only need to pay the telephone line charges and installation costs. The machines are fabricated locally, and a contractor of Singapore Telecommunications Ltd designs the machine.
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5.4. Singapore Bus Service Ltd Singapore Bus Service Ltd (SBS) is a major bus company in Singapore. It has been providing public transport service at an a!ordable price to the population. The company was formed in the 1970s by the Singapore government. Several years later it was privatised with the hope that this would improve e$ciency of the company. To provide better services to the public, SBS implemented the SBS Guide information booth to provide comprehensive information on bus services to the public. One objective is to make such services available to the public even after o$ce hours. Miss Tan Siew Kim, a senior public relation o$cer in SBS, said that cost is not a main consideration of the company when assessing the viability of SBS Guide. It only hopes to make information of their services widely available and more easily accessible. The "rm has chosen the touch screen method to operate the booths because it is more user friendly. When considering the presentation of information, Ms. Tan said that the most important consideration is the comprehensives of information, the user friendliness of the machines, and the ease of understandability of the language presented. The software that SBS has used for its information booth was developed jointly by the National Computer Board and SBS own in-house system group. However, an outside company supplied the hardware. Miss Tan revealed that the total cost of the entire project including software development cost is about S$1.5 million. Though no market research was done to survey the public's response to the machine before setting up SBS Guides in bus interchanges, Miss Tan said that the machine at Tampines bus interchange (the "rst SBS Guide) served as a prototype to test users' reactions before subsequent units were implemented. During the launch of the project, banners and bookmarks were given away to promote public awareness. The bene"ts derived by the "rm are mostly intangible. Users had feedback that they appreciate the e!orts that were being made by the "rm. Miss Tan also revealed that the company is proud of its own e!orts although there might be little e!ect on its revenue. SBS found that one problem it has encountered is the way information should be presented. Thus, a lot of time had been spent internally or externally to "nd out the e!ectiveness of the way information is presented. Also, there was a need to "nd ways to reduce the level of processes that users have to go through before getting the required information. Another problem that was encountered after implementation was that the system would be down during maintenance or running of jobs and as a result, the public cannot use the machines. Also, there were cases of vandalism and it was reported that one of the machines at Tampines was vandalised. Miss Tan also stressed that SBS would try to include new information as needed to ensure up-to-date information and to make future improvements in line with the services that SBS is providing. 5.5. Development Bank of Singapore Ltd The Development Bank of Singapore (DBS) is one of the big four local banks in Singapore. For several years running, it has been one of the top-earning banks in terms of pro"ts. DBS Bank
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provides many banking services. The availability of excellent products and good customer relation has enabled the bank to maintain a large customer base, and to occupy a leading position in the local bank industry. According to Mr. Sherman Tan, the vice-president of retail banking at DBS Bank, the implementation of the DBS Autobanker was one move by DBS Bank towards providing a wide range of services. It is set up in the early 1990s and currently there are a total of twenty-four machines available in Singapore. The DBS Autobanker enables the general public and customers to access various types of information and also to perform several kinds of transactions electronically. It thus provides customers with an alternative banking avenue, other than over the counter service. Mr. Tan said that with the DBS Autobanker, DBS Bank could extend its banking hours. The DBS Autobanker is operational round-the-clock. After the branches are closed, customers can still use the Autobanker to perform transactions or to access information. One of the factors considered in setting up the DBS Autobankers is that their locations must be in high tra$c areas so that there can be high usage. The locations must also be highly accessible. People should have no problem getting to the places where the machines are set up. Furthermore, the locations must provide enough security for the machines. This calls for proper lighting and open space so as to deter people from committing vandalism. The hardware of the machines is imported from a foreign supplier. However, there were some slight modi"cations made to its design to suit the local circumstances and to make them more user-friendly. The software, however, was designed locally. Most importantly, information presented was designed to be easy to read and simple to understand so that users have little or no problem acting upon the instructions prompted by the machine or understanding other information shown. The actual cost of the machine is not disclosed. However, rent has to be paid for the leasing of space to put the machines, even on the #oor spacing of the subsidiaries of DBS Bank. Ms. Nancy Khaw, a treasurer of retail banking at DBS Bank, said one major bene"t derived from the DBS Autobanker is that there is an increase in the bank's productivity. The DBS Autobanker can perform transactions and present information which previously would require the customers to liaise with the sta! of the bank. With DBS Autobanker, customers can use the machine to perform transactions and access information individually thereby freeing the sta! to do more important work. Since the DBS Autobanker can allow transactions to be done faster and make the bank's operations more e$cient, this translates into some cost savings for the bank. The DBS Autobanker also helps DBS Bank to improve its service to customers. As the DBS Autobanker provides an alternative avenue of banking services to customers, this helps to improve customers' satisfaction towards DBS Bank. Customer satisfaction means that customers stay loyal to DBS Bank. This certainly enables DBS Bank to retain its customers. The problem encountered, like all other kiosks, is vandalism. However, since DBS Autobanker is a non-cash machine, this problem is not as serious as ATM machines where theft of money is involved. Initially, DBS Bank had to create customers' acceptance of the machine. Hence, in the initial stage, sta! had to educate customers about the machine. This involved demonstration by the sta! on how to use the machines.
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DBS Bank has a few publicity campaigns to create awareness of the DBS Autobanker such as posters, pamphlets and articles in the newsletters to describe the machine. There were also advertisements placed in the local newspapers. So far, DBS has received positive comments from customers who praised the usefulness of the DBS Autobanker. It is able to show a lot of useful information and perform many functions. They were very pleased with this service. 5.6. Singapore Post Ltd Singapore Post Ltd is a "rm that provides postal services in Singapore. Its main objective of setting up the postal automated machine (PAM) is to provide round-the-clock convenience to people who want to procure information about the "rm's products and services, and/or to perform some sales or bill payment transactions. The company hopes that the public can use the PAM even after o$ce hours to pay telephone bills, public utilities bill, parking "nes or to purchase phone cards and also postage stamps. This is in addition to providing another avenue for the public to access the machine to "nd out more information about the various postal services. The machine makes use of bar-codes to read bills. The main consideration in locating the PAM is at places where there is high tra$c. Hence, most of the machines are located at major post o$ces, and the others set up in major shopping centres like Ngee Ann City. There is a need to consider the pricing of the products and the type of products that are sold by the PAM to ensure that their high costs could be recovered. Singapore Post Ltd had engaged IBM Singapore to undertake the project. Its own internal sta!s have also travelled to the United States to make evaluations. It has also estimated that the cost of the entire project is about S$1.7}S$1.8 million, which includes hardware, software, machines and publicity costs. Tests were also conducted internally to ensure user-friendliness of the machine. The "rst launch of the PAM was in 1994, a ceremony was held at Westin Plaza. Furthermore, lea#ets were given out at ten di!erent places to create public awareness. In addition, there are also press advertisements. The bene"ts that Singapore Post derived are mostly intangible. The PAM helps to establish goodwill between the public and the "rm. The customers "nd it convenient. The "rm is able to perform more value-added work and transactions. Queues at the counters of Singapore Post's branches have also been reduced. Customers of Singapore Post have also felt much happier with the services. Miss Olivie Chua, a retail network planning executive in Singapore Post, had revealed that one of the problems that users encountered involved the way the machine is designed. Initially, people do not know where to collect their products, as the drawer for dispensing the items was not obvious enough. Secondly, because of the security system that was built in the machine, some people "nd it annoying having to wait for quite some time before the machine actually dispenses the items. Thus, they have to insert video to teach people how to use the machine. Miss Chua also pointed out that Singapore Post's main target audience is people who have ATM cards. Older people who hardly know English or have no bank account may encounter problem using the machine. In that case, they can still go to the counter to perform transactions.
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The "rm revealed that there has been a 120% increase in the number of users from May 1994 to December 1995. The exact number of users in 1995 was 16,059. The data are as follows: May 1994 4794 transactions Dec. 1995 10970 transactions From Miss Chua's data, it shows that till December 1995, the number of users who have used the machines to "nd out information alone has reached a total of 10 million users. Despite the bene"ts that the "rm has derived from the implementation of information kiosks, they faced some problems as well. Sometimes, bar code cannot be read. However, the users can still key in their account number on the bills themselves. Furthermore, sometimes the NETS Network may malfunction, this has resulted in inconvenience to the users. As a result, the "rm has to do some reconciliation work by comparing unsuccessful payments at its headquarters. To date, the PAM has been set up in ten locations all over Singapore. These machines are usually located near or outside major Post O$ce branches. These places include Ang Mo Kio, Jurong Point, Clementi, Marine Parade, Tampines, Ngee Ann City, Colombo Court and the General Post O$ce. Miss Chua said it took about one year for implementing the entire project. She also commented that the increasing labour and rental costs is one reason why the company implements PAM. In their next phrase of implementation, Miss Chua hopes to add a weighing device to the PAM to enable users to weigh their letters to determine the postage rates.
6. Summary of results of interviews Table 2 summarizes the results of the interviews. One objective of our interviews with "rms is to "nd out the motivations of the "rms in introducing kiosks. Most of the organisations interviewed have cited that one main objective of implementing kiosks is to enhance their customer service (for instance, through the provision of information and customized or extended services). User-friendliness of the kiosks is therefore one major factor considered by many of the "rms in the design of the kiosks. This of course implies that such a move will be bene"cial to their businesses as better customer service enhances the goodwill towards the "rms. This corresponds to the favourable perceptions that users of kiosks also tend to have from a survey of the users of Kiosks in Singapre (Tung, forthcoming). Another objective of interviewing the organisations is for us to know the advantages that "rms have derived from the implementation of kiosks. Most "rms interviewed have said that one bene"t is that the kiosks have helped to improve their customer service. Customers generally are happy about the general features provided by the machines as said earlier. The availability of an alternative way by which business can be conducted is another bene"t which organisations derived from implementing kiosks. Some "rms said their kiosks have contributed to business e$ciency due to productivity gain. Some other organisations have stated that the kiosks they implemented have lead to increased earnings due to increased sales generated by the machines or earnings from advertisements placed on their kiosks. The above-mentioned bene"ts derived by local "rms are similar to some of the bene"ts gained by foreign "rms (as described in Table 1).
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Table 2 Summary of the results of interviews with "rms NTUC Income NTUC Income Information booth (Basic information kiosk)
COSDEL Pte Ltd Touchscreen greetings (Basic information kiosk)
Singapore Telecom Teleview public terminal (Basic information kiosk)
Reasons for setting up kiosks
Providing information
To &personalise' buying of greeting cards
Earn revenue
Factors considered when setting up kiosks
Locations of kiosks
Locations of kiosks
Locations of kiosks; Sponsors
Factors considered when designing kiosks
User friendly feature
User friendly feature
Physical design attractiveness; mobility of machines
Outsourcing vs in house development
Outsource
Imported from Hallmark USA
Outsource
Feasibility study before implement
No
No
No
Extent of promotions taken
Not extensive
Quite extensive
Not extensive
Outlay or investment costs
Each machine cost approx. $10,000, maintenance cost approx. S$80, 000
Each machine cost about S$15,000 to S$20,000
Not revealed
Problems in implement
Prone to damages, kiosks lost its sensitivity
Kiosks do not accept payments
Same as the factors considered when designing kiosks
Bene"ts derived by "rms
Increase in sales
Cost savings
Greater awareness of the machines
Feedback from users/ customers
Not revealed
The kiosks are interesting
Useful
Singapore bus service SBS bus guide (High transactional dissemination kiosk)
DBS Bank of Singapore DBS autobanker (High end information kiosk)
Singapore posts Postal automated machine (High end information kiosk)
Reasons for setting up kiosks
Providing information
To extend banking hours
Earn revenue
Factors considered in setteng up kiosks
User friendly features
Locations of kiosks; Security measures
Locations of kiosks; Pricing of products
Factors considered when designing kiosks
User friendly feature
User friendly feature
User friendly feature
Outsourcing vs in house development
Outsource and inhouse development team
Outsource from foreign country. Software designed locally
Outsource
(continued on next page)
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Table 2 (continued ) Singapore bus service SBS bus guide (High transactional dissemination kiosk)
DBS Bank of Singapore DBS autobanker (High end information kiosk)
Singapore posts Postal automated machine (High end information kiosk)
Feasibility study before implement
No. A prototype was used
No
An internal study conducted to ensure user friendliness
Extent of promotions taken
Quite extensive
Quite extensive
Not extensive
Outlay or investment costs
Entire project costs S$1.5 m
Not revealed
Entire project costs about S$1.7}1.8 m
Problems in implement
Presentation of information, vandalism, user friendly feature
Slight modi"cations need to be done to ensure user friendly
Inconvenience caused during maintenance
Bene"ts derived by "rms
Intangible
Increase in productivity and customers satisfaction
Increase in customers satisfaction
Feedback from users customers
Appreciate e!orts taken
Useful and pleased with the services
O!ers convenience
Results also show that the problem most "rms faced is the possibility of the machines being vandalised. The interviews also showed that kiosks' promotion was usually done on a very small scale or not at all. Most of the "rms also "nd that these information kiosks provide another alternative in which the "rm can provide services to their customers even after o$ce hours. The feedback that these "rms received from users was that users generally accepted the kiosks well. Overall, the organisations feel positive about the implementation of kiosks. They are able to derive some bene"ts from the kiosks, although most of the bene"ts are intangible. To the organisations, implementation of kiosks is a strategic move that will provide long term bene"ts to the business.
7. Limitations and conclusions One limitation is that of sample size. Information is only gathered from six "rms, as there are not many "rms to choose from in the "rst place. Firms that are approached for the study are chosen because their machines are the more common ones that are more widely located. In addition, there are a small number of "rms that are not willing to participate in the research, as they want to restrict the leakage of sensitive information to other people and competitors. Hence, the study only includes a few "rms that are willing to provide information.
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In addition, the industries from which organisations have set up kiosks are diverse and wide ranging. Firms interviewed in this study come from a variety of industries such as banking, insurance, retailing, public transportation, and postal and telecommunications. However, other organisations that have introduced kiosks but have not been included in our survey include government or quasi-government bodies like the Central Provident Fund Board (CPF Board) and the National Computer Board (NCB). Some "rms such as Singapore Bus Services Pte Ltd and Singapore Post have only implemented their kiosks for less than two years. As a result, there might be a time lag between their implementation and their e!ect on the public. Thus, the "rms might not be fully aware of the extent of the success or problems resulting from the kiosks yet. Based on the results of our analysis, we recommend to "rms intending to implement information kiosks that they should carry out more publicity. Most people indicated that they would respond positively to the publicity of the machines (O'Hara, 1994). Also, they should install signboards near the kiosks so those users can "nd the places of kiosks and identify the locations more easily. Others include the inclusion of other languages and provision of more privacy features. In addition, most of the "rms interviewed did not do a feasibility study of the project before going ahead with the implementation of the kiosks, in spite of relatively large investment sum involved. It is recommended that "rms perform a feasibility study, as there are many issues that ought to be resolved before investment. Some of these issues include choosing the right type of kiosks, whether the bene"ts outweigh the cost, whether to develop the software in-house or outsource it, and the timing and promotion of the implementation. The "rms should also take note of the problems encountered in implementing the kiosks in order to ensure that these problems will not recur in future implementations. The purpose of the research is to enable us to gain better understanding of how and why these "rms want to implement information kiosks. We believe that kiosks may be one of the most important vehicles in information dissemination and transaction performance in the future, and therefore further studies should be carried out in this area.
Acknowledgements The author would like to thank Chong Yeong Ling, Koh Yam Cheng and Toh Lay Quan for their contribution to the paper.
References Ballou, M. C. (1994). Lab adopts multimedia receptionist. Computerworld, 28(39), 94. Bender, A. (1994). Multimedia kiosks for process reengineering. Inform, 8(5), 28}29. Betts, M. (1994a). Kiosk ticketing takes o!. ComputerWorld, 28(36), 28. Betts, M. (1994b). Multimedia kiosks provide voter education in South Africa. Computerworld, 28(19), 75. Bredin, A. (1992). Electronic tourist information. Computerworld, 26(9), 65. Chandler, B. (1992). Multimedia: Multifaceted retail tool. Discount Merchandise, 32(10), 40. Corcoran, C. T. (1994). Employment agency gets a grip on its workload. Infoworld, 16(46), 122. DeNitto, E. (1994). Kiosks give OTC advice at Kroger. Advertising Age, 65(7), 25.
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Fensholt, C. (1994). New recipe for stirring up sales?. Supermarket Business, 49(1), 78. Fitzgerald, K. (1994). &Happy birthday, (name here)'. Advertising Age, 65(8), 17. Friedman, A. S. (1994). Kiosk sales are poised to explode. National Underwriter, 98(47), 935. Garber, J. R. (1994). Multimedia lives up to its promise. Forbes, 154(3), 96. Geer, C. T. (1994). For a new job, press C1. Forbes, 154(4), 118}119. Ingram, B. (1993). New money for old space. Supermarket Business, 56(2), 95}103. Jensen, J. (1994). The NFL's newest heavyweight. Advertising Age, 65(24), 16. Noack, D. (1994). Power to the people. American City and County, 109(6), 40}56. O'Hara, F. (1994). Interactive multimedia: Di!erent strokes for di!erent folks. Journal of Systems Management, 45(11), 16}19. Sargent, G., & McLvor, J. (1996). Public access information: A prototype web kiosk. Managing Information, 3(4), 32}35. Scha!er, A. (1994). Wild World's new automated ticket booth well-received. Amusement Business, 106(1), 19. Schneider, B. (1995). Using interactive kiosks for retail research. Marketing News, 29(1), 13. Shepherdson, K. (1994). Multimedia: Plenty of bene"ts for Corporations. Straits Times. Tung, L. L. A Study of the Use of Implementation Kiosks in Singapore, Forthcoming. Tung, L. L., & Tan, J. H. (1998). A model for the classi"cation of information kiosks in Singapore. International Journal of Information Management, 18(4), 255}264. Wiesendanger, B. (1991). Kiosks: Automated wonder or lead balloon. Sales and Marketing Management, 143(9), 40}43.
The implementation of information kiosks in Singapore: an exploratory study Lai Lai Tung* Information Management Research Centre, Rm. No. S3-016-56, School of Accountancy and Business, Nanyang Technological University, Nanyang Avenue, Singapore: 639798, Singapore
Abstract Information kiosks are machines that can disseminate information, handle transactions or perform both functions. For the purpose of our study, these kiosks are classi"ed into four di!erent types of information kiosks with respect to the functions that they perform. These four types of kiosks are basic information kiosks, high transactional kiosks, high information dissemination kiosks and high-end kiosks. Interviews with companies that have implemented such kiosks will shed light into the motivations behind "rms that have implemented such information kiosks as well as the "rms' consideration and bene"ts derived. Notes taking were used during interview sessions with "rms. Based on the results of our analysis, we recommend to "rms that intend to implement information kiosks that they should carry out more publicity as most people indicated that they would respond positively to publicity of the machines. Also, they should install signboards near the kiosks so those users can "nd the places of kiosks and identify the locations more easily. Others include the inclusion of other languages and provision of more privacy features. Finally, we list down some factors of consideration for "rms that are considering setting up kiosks. 1999 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved. Keywords: Information kiosks; Electronic commerce; Information technology implementation
1. Introduction An information kiosk has been de"ned as a computer-based information access point with features designed to make it suitable for the general public (Sargent & McLvor, 1996; Corcoran,
* Tel.: #65-7905727; fax: #65-7922313. E-mail address: [email protected] (L.L. Tung) 0268-4012/99/$ - see front matter 1999 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved. PII: S 0 2 6 8 - 4 0 1 2 ( 9 9 ) 0 0 0 1 6 - X
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1994). Today's information kiosk uses a multimedia PC that is housed in a close-"tting casing (Shepherdson, 1994). Placed in public areas or exhibitions, interactive kiosks are increasingly being used to disseminate, access, process and collect information and/or perform transaction ("nancial or non-"nancial) (Geer, 1994; Noack, 1994). Usually, these kiosks are highly interactive, easy to use and produced #ashy interactive multimedia information (Bender, 1994; Garber, 1994). Kiosks are usually operational 24 hours, and are not manned by human operator. They are strategically positioned at places with high human tra$c e.g. shopping malls, transportation hubs, o$ce complexes, etc. in order to maximize the number of people who can access it (see Ballou, 1994; Betts, 1994a, b; Bredin, 1992). Broadly, most information kiosks in Singapore can be grouped into four groups which varies along two dimensions}information dissemination (low vs. high) capabilities and transactional capabilities (low vs. high) (Tung & Tan, 1998) (see Fig. 1 below which is adapted from Tung and Tan, 1998). Low-information dissemination kiosk means that the information provided requires infrequent changes or updates and has structured query, usually guided by screen buttons. Highinformation dissemination kiosk requires frequent changes to the information provided to users and users can perform semi-structured query, usually via through a keyboard. Low transaction capability kiosk performs no transaction at all or it just accepts money during the transaction, e.g. car park kiosk. High transaction capability kiosks on the other hand enable users to access and update on-line databases on top of their transaction that may require personal identi"cation. With these de"nitions, the model in Fig. 1 below shows four types of kiosks.
Fig. 1. Model depicting the various types of kiosks in Singapore. 1. 2. 3. 4.
Customize a greeting card. Limited querying capabilities, no updating of database. Perform semi-structured query of what train/bus service to get to a destination of your choice. Farecard top-up by debiting ATM (automated teller machine) account} bank database updated. Perform government related services (querying and database update) 24 h a day.
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In Singapore, the kiosks that have been set up are used to disseminate information and/or handle certain transactions. Unlike in the United States, there is no kiosk that is purely for retail research (Schneider, 1995), although a few kiosks can perform survey on users by asking a few simple questions and having the users keying-in the answers.
2. Importance and objectives of research Information kiosk is a new technology in Singapore. Banks have access to such technology way back in the 1980s in the form of ATMs, but for the non-bank organizations, they only get hold of the technology in the last few years. This explains why there are relatively few companies that have implemented kiosks in Singapore. The kiosks of the future are likely to incorporate more interesting features to make them more attractive so as to entice people to try them (Garber, 1994; Fensholt, 1994; Chandler, 1992). The technology will most probably be there as technology from the US is being improved all the time. No company will want their machines to be white elephants (Wiesendanger, 1991; O'Hara, 1994). With more advanced systems in the market, companies which are contemplating the implementation of kiosks are likely to introduce more interesting machines in the foreseeable future (Jensen, 1994; Ingram, 1993; DeNitto, 1994). In addition, as the technology becomes more widely available (Friedman, 1994), more companies are expected to join in (Fitzgerald, 1994). The companies that have set up kiosks can de"nitely serve as a kind of test-run for the other companies that are still adopting a wait-and-see attitude. Once the other companies are assured of the success of such programs, they are likely to start setting their machines (Scha!er, 1994; Betts, 1994a). Thus, it is important that these companies which are contemplating setting up their machines learn from those who already have done so. This research will gather some of the necessary information for the former group of companies. There has been no previous study on the implementation of kiosks in Singapore. Because of the small number of "rms that have implemented kiosks in Singapore and the highly sensitive nature of the information regarding their implementation, this study is only an exploratory study of six "rms that have done so. Although the sample size does not yield itself to statistical interpretation, we hope that the semi-open interviews will unveil rich information regarding their implementation otherwise unavailable to surveys. The research objectives of this study are threefold: to "nd the motivations of "rms in setting up kiosks, the advantages derived and the problems encountered by them in the implementation. Summary of research objectives 1. Objectives in setting up information kiosks }Motivations of local "rms in setting up information kiosks 2. Bene"ts that "rms derived }The bene"ts that "rms have derived from implementing information kiosks 3. Problems encountered while undertaking the project }The problems "rms faced during and after implementation
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Table 1 Summary of bene"ts and problems to organisations Bene"ts of kiosks
Problems encountered
Provide publicity of the companies
Customers' resistance to the new technology
Enable di$cult-to-reach prospects to gain access to information about the company, its products and services. Help to increase sales via: E another avenue of doing business E doing of business after o$ce hours E increasing awareness of companies' products and services Help to relieve manpower shortage or reduce manpower use
Poor system design which means a need for frequent changes Poor support and maintenance of kiosks by retailers whose premises the machines are located
Inappropriate locations of kiosks which a!ect usage of the machines
Generate revenue from advertisements placed on kiosks and lease of space
The motivations of "rms in implementing information kiosks are interesting because the results will indicate the extent the original objectives of the organizations were met. It can provide us with greater insights into the extent of success or failure of the "rms that have implemented kiosks. Also, by investigating the advantages derived from kiosks' implementation in Singapore, we can gauge whether local xrms have capitalized on the potential benexts that kiosks would be able to provide. Table 1 presents the results of a literature review on the bene"ts and problems of kiosks to organizations from which we can make comparisons. As for investigating the problems encountered on the implementation of kiosks, our objective is to use the results derived as a basis for us to make some recommendations to "rms that are considering the implementation of information kiosks. As for "rms that had implemented information kiosks, hopefully, this will help them improve their services.
3. Research design and methodology 3.1. Selection of xrms Interviews with the companies' personnel in charge of or involved in the implementation of information kiosks were conducted. Our intention was to interview all "rms whose kiosks are more common and widely located. Telephone calls were initially made to enquire about the o$cers who can provide the relevant information regarding the topic. Formal letters are then sent to the o$cers concerned to request for interview appointments with tentative dates being stated. A list of the topics or questions related to the interview was also sent so as to let the o$cers concerned aware of the issues involved. Following the process, telephone calls are then made to con"rm with the o$cers the appointment dates or to re-schedule the appointments.
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3.2. Design of the interview The interviews conducted were unstructured and informal. This was so as to provide the breadth and depth of the topic asked, and also to provide the interviewers with greater insights when doing their analysis. Questions were "rst formulated based on the objectives desired before conducting the interviews. The questions were only used as an interview guide to channel discussions into the desired topic and were customised during the interviews to suit the individual "rms. 3.3. The interview process The duration of each interview was about half an hour with 10 min of allowances. To ensure clarity and accuracy of the information gathered, further questions were asked during the interviews. One member of the team served as the interviewer while the other member served as the secretary. This was to ensure that there was vital eye contact and thus built rapport between the interviewer and interviewee(s). It also enabled the interviewer to pay attention and give considerations to the interviewee's feelings and opinion. At the end each interview, a summary of the information gathered during the interview was communicated to the interviewee to ensure that there was no misunderstanding and miscommunication between both parties.
4. Research questions Speci"cally, the research questions are: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5.
What are the reasons for setting up these machines? What are the factors considered when setting up the machine, including their design? How do the "rms go about implementing such machines? Had the "rms conducted any research before implementing the machines? Had the "rms taken any steps to promote public awareness of the machines that they have implemented? 6. What are the costs incurred? 7. What are the problems that are encountered in the process of implementation? 8. What are the bene"ts derived?
5. Results of interviews with 5rms A total of eight "rms were contacted for the purpose of our research. Out of these eight "rms, six of them participated in this interview. The "rms that had participated were: E NTUC Income Insurance Co-Operative Ltd E Cosdel (S) Pte Ltd (agent of Hallmark Card)
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Singapore Telecommunications Ltd Singapore Bus Service Pte Ltd Development Bank of Singapore Ltd Singapore Post Ltd
5.1. NTUC Income Insurance Co-Operative Ltd NTUC Income is an insurance co-operative founded in Singapore. Its objective is to provide a!ordable insurance coverage to the population in Singapore. The "rm has expanded tremendously over the past 20 yr. In its move to reach out more e!ectively to the public and also due to the feasibility of technology, it has set up a kind of kiosk called NTUC Income information booth. The NTUC Income information booths are basically used to provide information on the products and services o!ered by NTUC Income besides other media like newspapers, magazines, and television. They basically show the various types of insurance policies o!ered by NTUC Income, the bene"ts of becoming members of NTUC Income, and the highlights of the activities organised by the "rm. They even include various job positions o!ered by the "rm. Presently, there are a total of 15 information booths implemented island-wide. These booths are mostly located in supermarkets and shopping centres where there are high human tra$c. This is to ensure that the usage rate is high enough to justify the costs of setting up the machines there. Mr. Frederick Chan, an executive in the marketing department of NTUC Income, said that user friendliness is a very important consideration to ensure that the machines are simple to use so that users will not feel frustrated in using the booths. Also, the machines are designed in such a way that it is easy for users to terminate an option halfway if he or she desires and then to switch to another option quickly. Initially, the booths are not very user friendly or ergonomically e$cient, but now the design has improved. According to Mr. Chan, there were more than 430,000 people who have accessed the booth till date. Mr. Chan said that no research has been conducted on the public before the machine was introduced. The hardware that is used was bought from Philips and a multimedia company has been engaged to develop the machines. Although there are advertisements placed in the newspapers, it is not very frequent. One bene"t that the "rm has derived is that there are more enquiries from people or users about the "rm's insurance policies. It has contributed to the increase in the sales of the insurance products but the e!ect are di$cult to quantify. Mr. Chan also revealed that the cost of each booth was about S$10,000 and the overall maintenance cost per annum is about S$80,000. A vendor undertook the maintenance project. Some of the problems that were encountered by the "rm are as follows: Firstly, some of these machines are prone to damage due to shifting of the machines in and out of the supermarkets. However, in general, the machines are in good conditions. There are not many cases of vandalism. According to Mr. Chan's records, there had been one case of vandalism that was when somebody had spilled his drink on the machine. Secondly, sometimes the touch screen feature of the machine can lose its sensitivity. As a result, there can be no response to the user's commands. Lastly, some machines &hanged' when they
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are being shifted as the processors are damaged. Thus, they would also not react to the users' inputs. 5.2. Cosdel (S) Pte Ltd (Agent of Hallmark Card) Hallmark Card is the largest greeting cards maker in the United States. Cosdel Pte Ltd, which was contacted for our survey, is an agent of Hallmark Card in the distribution and marketing of the products. From the interview with Cosdel, the objective that was cited by Mr. Charles Wee, the sales and marketing manager, for the implementation of the TSG machine is that Hallmark wants to make the buying of greeting cards a personalised experience for customers. It must add more things to the process of choosing and buying greeting cards (Fitzgerald, 1994). And it is hoped that the introduction of information technology can be made use of to enhance the experience of customers in buying Hallmark cards. Due to the above-mentioned reason, TSG machines are set up to make use of the existing technology to help Hallmark achieve its objective. The company identi"ed that there will be an increasing trend of people using information technology and computers for their shopping in the future; hence, by introducing the TSG machines now, it hopes to get customers to accept its machines earlier. The TGS machines are imported from Hallmark USA and can be set up in non-traditional outlet, not only in bookshops and giftshops. Mr. Wee said that these machines are especially useful for shops without enough space to put up shelves for displaying cards. The machines can provide another avenue for selling Hallmark Cards. Mr. Wee also said that as there are usually high development costs involved with the implementation of these machines, there is a need to ensure that there is high volume to generate more margins to cover cost and earn a pro"t. Hence, the "rm needs to set up these machines at places with large clientele or where tra$c is high. In addition, shops where there is no space for large "xtures are another choice. Generally, the designs of cards from the machines are di!erent from those of traditional cards. Due to the limitations of the machines and the printers, the designs of the cards cannot be too complicated. Also, recycled papers are used for these cards. CD Roms are chosen as a medium of storage because they can store the high volume of data required. It is also more e$cient. User friendliness of the machines is a major factor of consideration so as to make the buying of cards by using the machines a pleasant experience for customers. Mr. Wee said that although no research was conducted before these machines were implemented, they have received good responses and comments from the public so far. There were only a few promotions undertaken so far. One was at Marina Square on 1}7 November 1995 while another was held at Isetan on 14 February 1995. There was also some publicity by newspaper articles on the machines. Mr. Wee revealed that the cost of each machine was about S$15,000}S$20,000, but he gave no details on the maintenance and operating costs. A problem that was encountered after implementation is that some customers took cards without paying, as the store assistants do not always have the time to oversee users of the machine. Mr. Wee also revealed that the users had commented that they found the machines very interesting and innovative. It is another way of buying cards.
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5.3. Singapore Telecommunications Ltd The objectives of Singapore Telecommunications Limited in setting up the Teleview Public Terminals are as follows: Firstly, the "rm hopes to earn revenue through sponsorship of the public terminals. It also hopes to create public awareness of Teleview to the general public and students in educational institutes and libraries. Another objective is to facilitate Teleview users in accessing Teleview at public places. This also enables the "rm to provide another advertising media to sponsors. To be able to motivate potential sponsors, sponsors not only enjoy exclusiveness in the display of information but the "rm also gives them attractive incentives so that the costs can be more competitively compared to the costs for outdoor advertising. The "rm provides ten advertising carousel frames to the sponsors with no creation costs. More discounts are given to the sponsors when they sponsor more terminals. It also hopes that there are no maintenance costs to the sponsors. In addition, the sponsors are not required to bear the costs of telephone line installations and phone bills. Furthermore, there is no need for the sponsors to have a sta! to liaise frequently with Teleview except at the time of set up. Since there is no requirement of permanent sta!, there is saving of labour costs. The factors that were considered for setting up the booth are as follows: The "rst consideration involved the sponsors. The "rm let the sponsors agree on the location of the terminals to match the market segment of their products. Hence, the site location must have high tra$c. The site location is usually an institute of learning and must be safe from vandalism. The site location must serve as a penetration of Teleview into the residential and business sectors. The next consideration is the physical design of the machine. It must be shock proof and water proof to prevent misuse and vandalism. Also, the shape, besides being attractive and colourful, should be able to accommodate the standard desktop Central Processing Unit (CPU) with cable connected to the monitor in the upper section. The height should be comfortable for the average person and the monitor is placed at an inclination that is convenient to read and it should be antiglare to prevent disruption to reading. In addition, it should be transportable in a van and should not be too heavy for any two persons to carry. The casing should be hard plastic and scratch proof. The CPU, keyboard and monitor should be protected from theft and damage during usage and transportation. The casing should be well ventilated with a fan but prevented from pest to enter. Lastly, a public terminal (PT) software has to be developed and maintained to run the carousel frames. The bene"t derived from the PTs to Teleview is that it creates awareness of Teleview to students and also the general public. The public can try out Teleview and become interested to subscribe. However, the interviewee wished to keep its cost con"dential. Generally, the public has found the PTs useful and bene"cial. There is no consistent pattern of access, various data are accessed by di!erent users at various PT sites. To date, a total of 114 machines have been set up. Singapore Telecoms will only need to pay the telephone line charges and installation costs. The machines are fabricated locally, and a contractor of Singapore Telecommunications Ltd designs the machine.
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5.4. Singapore Bus Service Ltd Singapore Bus Service Ltd (SBS) is a major bus company in Singapore. It has been providing public transport service at an a!ordable price to the population. The company was formed in the 1970s by the Singapore government. Several years later it was privatised with the hope that this would improve e$ciency of the company. To provide better services to the public, SBS implemented the SBS Guide information booth to provide comprehensive information on bus services to the public. One objective is to make such services available to the public even after o$ce hours. Miss Tan Siew Kim, a senior public relation o$cer in SBS, said that cost is not a main consideration of the company when assessing the viability of SBS Guide. It only hopes to make information of their services widely available and more easily accessible. The "rm has chosen the touch screen method to operate the booths because it is more user friendly. When considering the presentation of information, Ms. Tan said that the most important consideration is the comprehensives of information, the user friendliness of the machines, and the ease of understandability of the language presented. The software that SBS has used for its information booth was developed jointly by the National Computer Board and SBS own in-house system group. However, an outside company supplied the hardware. Miss Tan revealed that the total cost of the entire project including software development cost is about S$1.5 million. Though no market research was done to survey the public's response to the machine before setting up SBS Guides in bus interchanges, Miss Tan said that the machine at Tampines bus interchange (the "rst SBS Guide) served as a prototype to test users' reactions before subsequent units were implemented. During the launch of the project, banners and bookmarks were given away to promote public awareness. The bene"ts derived by the "rm are mostly intangible. Users had feedback that they appreciate the e!orts that were being made by the "rm. Miss Tan also revealed that the company is proud of its own e!orts although there might be little e!ect on its revenue. SBS found that one problem it has encountered is the way information should be presented. Thus, a lot of time had been spent internally or externally to "nd out the e!ectiveness of the way information is presented. Also, there was a need to "nd ways to reduce the level of processes that users have to go through before getting the required information. Another problem that was encountered after implementation was that the system would be down during maintenance or running of jobs and as a result, the public cannot use the machines. Also, there were cases of vandalism and it was reported that one of the machines at Tampines was vandalised. Miss Tan also stressed that SBS would try to include new information as needed to ensure up-to-date information and to make future improvements in line with the services that SBS is providing. 5.5. Development Bank of Singapore Ltd The Development Bank of Singapore (DBS) is one of the big four local banks in Singapore. For several years running, it has been one of the top-earning banks in terms of pro"ts. DBS Bank
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provides many banking services. The availability of excellent products and good customer relation has enabled the bank to maintain a large customer base, and to occupy a leading position in the local bank industry. According to Mr. Sherman Tan, the vice-president of retail banking at DBS Bank, the implementation of the DBS Autobanker was one move by DBS Bank towards providing a wide range of services. It is set up in the early 1990s and currently there are a total of twenty-four machines available in Singapore. The DBS Autobanker enables the general public and customers to access various types of information and also to perform several kinds of transactions electronically. It thus provides customers with an alternative banking avenue, other than over the counter service. Mr. Tan said that with the DBS Autobanker, DBS Bank could extend its banking hours. The DBS Autobanker is operational round-the-clock. After the branches are closed, customers can still use the Autobanker to perform transactions or to access information. One of the factors considered in setting up the DBS Autobankers is that their locations must be in high tra$c areas so that there can be high usage. The locations must also be highly accessible. People should have no problem getting to the places where the machines are set up. Furthermore, the locations must provide enough security for the machines. This calls for proper lighting and open space so as to deter people from committing vandalism. The hardware of the machines is imported from a foreign supplier. However, there were some slight modi"cations made to its design to suit the local circumstances and to make them more user-friendly. The software, however, was designed locally. Most importantly, information presented was designed to be easy to read and simple to understand so that users have little or no problem acting upon the instructions prompted by the machine or understanding other information shown. The actual cost of the machine is not disclosed. However, rent has to be paid for the leasing of space to put the machines, even on the #oor spacing of the subsidiaries of DBS Bank. Ms. Nancy Khaw, a treasurer of retail banking at DBS Bank, said one major bene"t derived from the DBS Autobanker is that there is an increase in the bank's productivity. The DBS Autobanker can perform transactions and present information which previously would require the customers to liaise with the sta! of the bank. With DBS Autobanker, customers can use the machine to perform transactions and access information individually thereby freeing the sta! to do more important work. Since the DBS Autobanker can allow transactions to be done faster and make the bank's operations more e$cient, this translates into some cost savings for the bank. The DBS Autobanker also helps DBS Bank to improve its service to customers. As the DBS Autobanker provides an alternative avenue of banking services to customers, this helps to improve customers' satisfaction towards DBS Bank. Customer satisfaction means that customers stay loyal to DBS Bank. This certainly enables DBS Bank to retain its customers. The problem encountered, like all other kiosks, is vandalism. However, since DBS Autobanker is a non-cash machine, this problem is not as serious as ATM machines where theft of money is involved. Initially, DBS Bank had to create customers' acceptance of the machine. Hence, in the initial stage, sta! had to educate customers about the machine. This involved demonstration by the sta! on how to use the machines.
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DBS Bank has a few publicity campaigns to create awareness of the DBS Autobanker such as posters, pamphlets and articles in the newsletters to describe the machine. There were also advertisements placed in the local newspapers. So far, DBS has received positive comments from customers who praised the usefulness of the DBS Autobanker. It is able to show a lot of useful information and perform many functions. They were very pleased with this service. 5.6. Singapore Post Ltd Singapore Post Ltd is a "rm that provides postal services in Singapore. Its main objective of setting up the postal automated machine (PAM) is to provide round-the-clock convenience to people who want to procure information about the "rm's products and services, and/or to perform some sales or bill payment transactions. The company hopes that the public can use the PAM even after o$ce hours to pay telephone bills, public utilities bill, parking "nes or to purchase phone cards and also postage stamps. This is in addition to providing another avenue for the public to access the machine to "nd out more information about the various postal services. The machine makes use of bar-codes to read bills. The main consideration in locating the PAM is at places where there is high tra$c. Hence, most of the machines are located at major post o$ces, and the others set up in major shopping centres like Ngee Ann City. There is a need to consider the pricing of the products and the type of products that are sold by the PAM to ensure that their high costs could be recovered. Singapore Post Ltd had engaged IBM Singapore to undertake the project. Its own internal sta!s have also travelled to the United States to make evaluations. It has also estimated that the cost of the entire project is about S$1.7}S$1.8 million, which includes hardware, software, machines and publicity costs. Tests were also conducted internally to ensure user-friendliness of the machine. The "rst launch of the PAM was in 1994, a ceremony was held at Westin Plaza. Furthermore, lea#ets were given out at ten di!erent places to create public awareness. In addition, there are also press advertisements. The bene"ts that Singapore Post derived are mostly intangible. The PAM helps to establish goodwill between the public and the "rm. The customers "nd it convenient. The "rm is able to perform more value-added work and transactions. Queues at the counters of Singapore Post's branches have also been reduced. Customers of Singapore Post have also felt much happier with the services. Miss Olivie Chua, a retail network planning executive in Singapore Post, had revealed that one of the problems that users encountered involved the way the machine is designed. Initially, people do not know where to collect their products, as the drawer for dispensing the items was not obvious enough. Secondly, because of the security system that was built in the machine, some people "nd it annoying having to wait for quite some time before the machine actually dispenses the items. Thus, they have to insert video to teach people how to use the machine. Miss Chua also pointed out that Singapore Post's main target audience is people who have ATM cards. Older people who hardly know English or have no bank account may encounter problem using the machine. In that case, they can still go to the counter to perform transactions.
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The "rm revealed that there has been a 120% increase in the number of users from May 1994 to December 1995. The exact number of users in 1995 was 16,059. The data are as follows: May 1994 4794 transactions Dec. 1995 10970 transactions From Miss Chua's data, it shows that till December 1995, the number of users who have used the machines to "nd out information alone has reached a total of 10 million users. Despite the bene"ts that the "rm has derived from the implementation of information kiosks, they faced some problems as well. Sometimes, bar code cannot be read. However, the users can still key in their account number on the bills themselves. Furthermore, sometimes the NETS Network may malfunction, this has resulted in inconvenience to the users. As a result, the "rm has to do some reconciliation work by comparing unsuccessful payments at its headquarters. To date, the PAM has been set up in ten locations all over Singapore. These machines are usually located near or outside major Post O$ce branches. These places include Ang Mo Kio, Jurong Point, Clementi, Marine Parade, Tampines, Ngee Ann City, Colombo Court and the General Post O$ce. Miss Chua said it took about one year for implementing the entire project. She also commented that the increasing labour and rental costs is one reason why the company implements PAM. In their next phrase of implementation, Miss Chua hopes to add a weighing device to the PAM to enable users to weigh their letters to determine the postage rates.
6. Summary of results of interviews Table 2 summarizes the results of the interviews. One objective of our interviews with "rms is to "nd out the motivations of the "rms in introducing kiosks. Most of the organisations interviewed have cited that one main objective of implementing kiosks is to enhance their customer service (for instance, through the provision of information and customized or extended services). User-friendliness of the kiosks is therefore one major factor considered by many of the "rms in the design of the kiosks. This of course implies that such a move will be bene"cial to their businesses as better customer service enhances the goodwill towards the "rms. This corresponds to the favourable perceptions that users of kiosks also tend to have from a survey of the users of Kiosks in Singapre (Tung, forthcoming). Another objective of interviewing the organisations is for us to know the advantages that "rms have derived from the implementation of kiosks. Most "rms interviewed have said that one bene"t is that the kiosks have helped to improve their customer service. Customers generally are happy about the general features provided by the machines as said earlier. The availability of an alternative way by which business can be conducted is another bene"t which organisations derived from implementing kiosks. Some "rms said their kiosks have contributed to business e$ciency due to productivity gain. Some other organisations have stated that the kiosks they implemented have lead to increased earnings due to increased sales generated by the machines or earnings from advertisements placed on their kiosks. The above-mentioned bene"ts derived by local "rms are similar to some of the bene"ts gained by foreign "rms (as described in Table 1).
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Table 2 Summary of the results of interviews with "rms NTUC Income NTUC Income Information booth (Basic information kiosk)
COSDEL Pte Ltd Touchscreen greetings (Basic information kiosk)
Singapore Telecom Teleview public terminal (Basic information kiosk)
Reasons for setting up kiosks
Providing information
To &personalise' buying of greeting cards
Earn revenue
Factors considered when setting up kiosks
Locations of kiosks
Locations of kiosks
Locations of kiosks; Sponsors
Factors considered when designing kiosks
User friendly feature
User friendly feature
Physical design attractiveness; mobility of machines
Outsourcing vs in house development
Outsource
Imported from Hallmark USA
Outsource
Feasibility study before implement
No
No
No
Extent of promotions taken
Not extensive
Quite extensive
Not extensive
Outlay or investment costs
Each machine cost approx. $10,000, maintenance cost approx. S$80, 000
Each machine cost about S$15,000 to S$20,000
Not revealed
Problems in implement
Prone to damages, kiosks lost its sensitivity
Kiosks do not accept payments
Same as the factors considered when designing kiosks
Bene"ts derived by "rms
Increase in sales
Cost savings
Greater awareness of the machines
Feedback from users/ customers
Not revealed
The kiosks are interesting
Useful
Singapore bus service SBS bus guide (High transactional dissemination kiosk)
DBS Bank of Singapore DBS autobanker (High end information kiosk)
Singapore posts Postal automated machine (High end information kiosk)
Reasons for setting up kiosks
Providing information
To extend banking hours
Earn revenue
Factors considered in setteng up kiosks
User friendly features
Locations of kiosks; Security measures
Locations of kiosks; Pricing of products
Factors considered when designing kiosks
User friendly feature
User friendly feature
User friendly feature
Outsourcing vs in house development
Outsource and inhouse development team
Outsource from foreign country. Software designed locally
Outsource
(continued on next page)
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Table 2 (continued ) Singapore bus service SBS bus guide (High transactional dissemination kiosk)
DBS Bank of Singapore DBS autobanker (High end information kiosk)
Singapore posts Postal automated machine (High end information kiosk)
Feasibility study before implement
No. A prototype was used
No
An internal study conducted to ensure user friendliness
Extent of promotions taken
Quite extensive
Quite extensive
Not extensive
Outlay or investment costs
Entire project costs S$1.5 m
Not revealed
Entire project costs about S$1.7}1.8 m
Problems in implement
Presentation of information, vandalism, user friendly feature
Slight modi"cations need to be done to ensure user friendly
Inconvenience caused during maintenance
Bene"ts derived by "rms
Intangible
Increase in productivity and customers satisfaction
Increase in customers satisfaction
Feedback from users customers
Appreciate e!orts taken
Useful and pleased with the services
O!ers convenience
Results also show that the problem most "rms faced is the possibility of the machines being vandalised. The interviews also showed that kiosks' promotion was usually done on a very small scale or not at all. Most of the "rms also "nd that these information kiosks provide another alternative in which the "rm can provide services to their customers even after o$ce hours. The feedback that these "rms received from users was that users generally accepted the kiosks well. Overall, the organisations feel positive about the implementation of kiosks. They are able to derive some bene"ts from the kiosks, although most of the bene"ts are intangible. To the organisations, implementation of kiosks is a strategic move that will provide long term bene"ts to the business.
7. Limitations and conclusions One limitation is that of sample size. Information is only gathered from six "rms, as there are not many "rms to choose from in the "rst place. Firms that are approached for the study are chosen because their machines are the more common ones that are more widely located. In addition, there are a small number of "rms that are not willing to participate in the research, as they want to restrict the leakage of sensitive information to other people and competitors. Hence, the study only includes a few "rms that are willing to provide information.
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In addition, the industries from which organisations have set up kiosks are diverse and wide ranging. Firms interviewed in this study come from a variety of industries such as banking, insurance, retailing, public transportation, and postal and telecommunications. However, other organisations that have introduced kiosks but have not been included in our survey include government or quasi-government bodies like the Central Provident Fund Board (CPF Board) and the National Computer Board (NCB). Some "rms such as Singapore Bus Services Pte Ltd and Singapore Post have only implemented their kiosks for less than two years. As a result, there might be a time lag between their implementation and their e!ect on the public. Thus, the "rms might not be fully aware of the extent of the success or problems resulting from the kiosks yet. Based on the results of our analysis, we recommend to "rms intending to implement information kiosks that they should carry out more publicity. Most people indicated that they would respond positively to the publicity of the machines (O'Hara, 1994). Also, they should install signboards near the kiosks so those users can "nd the places of kiosks and identify the locations more easily. Others include the inclusion of other languages and provision of more privacy features. In addition, most of the "rms interviewed did not do a feasibility study of the project before going ahead with the implementation of the kiosks, in spite of relatively large investment sum involved. It is recommended that "rms perform a feasibility study, as there are many issues that ought to be resolved before investment. Some of these issues include choosing the right type of kiosks, whether the bene"ts outweigh the cost, whether to develop the software in-house or outsource it, and the timing and promotion of the implementation. The "rms should also take note of the problems encountered in implementing the kiosks in order to ensure that these problems will not recur in future implementations. The purpose of the research is to enable us to gain better understanding of how and why these "rms want to implement information kiosks. We believe that kiosks may be one of the most important vehicles in information dissemination and transaction performance in the future, and therefore further studies should be carried out in this area.
Acknowledgements The author would like to thank Chong Yeong Ling, Koh Yam Cheng and Toh Lay Quan for their contribution to the paper.
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