This dissertation examines youth consumer culture in South Africa through a case study of cellular phone consumption. The hypothesis is that it is possible to draw some conclusions about identity formation, particularly among young people, by examining how they use cellular phones. Two methods were employed to understand three key research questions regarding the youth (aged 18-25). They were: Why do youth use cellular phones and what gratifications do they experience? From a marketing perspective, what web promotions are in place to target this youth market? How do the youth respond to these messages? The first method utilised a questionnaire investigating young people‟s perceptions, sampled from a group of students at the University of KwaZulu-Natal (UKZN). This objective was to reveal why young people have cellular phones and how they respond to marketed messages encouraging cellular phone consumption. The second method applied a semiotic analysis of the South African oligopolistic cellular networks' websites. This showed how marketers perceive their youth segment and how they harness the Internet as a marketing medium. Significant findings that foster consumption were presented regarding this youth sample. One such finding is that self expression is articulated through consumption. This is particularly evident in the purchasing of cellular phones and airtime and how the purchasing decision reflects the individualisation of self. Further, the importance of social institutions emerged with family instilling or attempting to instil discernment regarding diligent and necessary spending. The opposite is evident with peer pressure influencing unnecessary consumption. Lastly, advertising emerged as a central driver in creating brand awareness and stimulating the consumption of cellular phones and packages amongst this youth segment. Against the research results discussed, relevant literature gave support and further insights into youth consumer culture. This dissertation provides, and concludes with, a deeper understanding into the dynamics of youth and their cellular phone consumption in South Africa, particularly in an area where there has been very little research. / Thesis (M.A.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, Durban, 2009.

Mobile phones are everywhere in contemporary society. They have permeated most facets of society, and can be described as a culturally prominent feature of contemporary society. The focus of this dissertation aims to identify and simultaneously distinguish the different types of mobile phone convergence existing among mobile phone users in Durban, South Africa. This “identification” will analyse whether or not any of the identified forms (of mobile convergence) are present among mobile phones of Durban based users. This broad “umbrella” identification will then be followed by a number of sub‐questions that will be answered throughout the dissertation. These questions will identify mass adoption traits among mobile phone users, and will attempt to chart the difference in adoption and usage function as articulated by Marc Prensky’s digital immigrants and digital natives. The hypothesis is based on mobile phones being a “converged medium”. The mobile phone seems to have been universally embraced, growing in usage almost exponentially over the last decade or so. Because the mobile phone has become a multipurpose device, marketed as an essential prerequisite for modern life, it has become ubiquitous in most societies around the world and is an important medium to study, and more importantly to understand. / Thesis (M.A.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, Durban, 2012.

Future generations are built on the children of today. Thus, children's well- being and safety is of paramount importance. Children are making use of mobile devices, such as smart phones, to gain access to the Internet and other data driven mobile services. Children and parents alike are unaware of the risks they are exposed to when accessing such services. A clear lack of parental control over or awareness of this mobile use has been identified in South Africa. Without adequate awareness and successful use of a comprehensive mobile parental control solution, South African children may be at risk. This risk may include exposure to potentially harmful content and/or individuals. This dissertation presents a framework that supports the attainment of a comprehensive mobile parental control solution based on sound research.

M.A. (Fundamental Communication) / Communication technologies like the mobile phone often present a double-edged sword in romantic relationships. While the mobile phone can enhance communication, it can simultaneously present a source of conflict. But through the use of a rule-based system, romantic partners can minimise conflict. This study investigated mobile phone usage rules that are negotiated by adolescents and young adults in their romantic relationships and also how these rules have been perceived to affect the romantic relationship. Of particular focus were rules that pertained specifically to the management of personal privacy boundaries by partners through the appendage of the mobile phone. The dialectic framework of Communication Privacy Management presented a nuanced lens from which to investigate the surveillance dimension of mobile phone appropriation in romantic relationships. The rise of peer-to-peer monitoring offered a unique point of departure that makes understanding the manifestation of this form surveillance in romantic relationships relevant. Findings conducted from surveys and interviews indicate that the negotiation of rules for appropriate mobile phone rules is indeed crucial to not only minimising conflict in romantic relationships but also enhancing trust and respect in the dyad. So important were trust and harmony that partners are even willing to allow their implicit rules and understandings of privacy to be superseded by a pursuit for these relational qualities. In addition to this, partners preferred not to resolves relational arguments over the phone because of the impetuous and intrusive nature of the mobile phone persona. While some rules remained constant, the quantitative survey showed that rules were evolutionary in nature as the relationships grew. The subsequent qualitative interviews also confirmed this finding.

Mobile phone usage involves the mobile phone, the telecommunications system, mobile phone users, and the adoption and use of the system. Mobile communications is a complex and rapidly changing industry consisting of the hardware, software, network and business aspects. Mobile phone users are influenced by demographic, social, cultural and contextual factors that complicate the understanding of mobile phone usage. Advances in technology and market competition drive the addition of new services and features. In contrast, human cognition and attention are more constrained and many users find it difficult to cope with the cognitive demands of mobile phone technology. The aim of this study is to develop a model for representing the influence of motivational needs and cultural factors on mobile phone usage variety. The link between motivational needs and mobile phone usage variety, the cultural factors that influence mobile phone usage variety, as well as usage spaces as an approach to representing usage variety, are researched. The research encompasses a literature study, structured interviews, a pilot study and a survey. The pilot study and survey yielded data about mobile phone usage of university students under the age of 30 in South Africa. The results from the statistical analysis were triangulated with the findings of the literature study and the observations made about mobile phone usage during this two-year period. A final survey was conducted to verify the model. The contribution of this study is a mobile phone technology usage model (MOPTUM) for representing the motivational and cultural factors that influence mobile phone usage variety in such a way that users can use the model to express their mobile phone usage needs in non-technical terms while marketers and designers can use the model to convert the expressed user needs into the features required. MOPTUM draws on concepts and models from sociology, computer-supported cooperative work, human-computer interaction and technology adoption models from the field of marketing. MOPTUM verifies some existing findings on mobile phone usage and then integrates and extends these existing models to provide a new model for understanding the motivational and cultural factors that influence mobile phone usage variety. / Computing / Ph. D. (Computer Science)

Thesis (Ph.D. (Marketing))--University of the Witwatersrand, Faculty of Commerce, Law and Management, School of Economic & Business Sciences, 2017 / Keywords: brand equity, Samsung mobile phones, Generation Y, brand awareness, brand image, perceived quality, brand loyalty, brand satisfaction, brand love and consumption values. Samsung is the leading brand in the mobile phone industry, and is dominant over fierce competitors, such as Apple, Nokia, Huawei and Blackberry. This is evident from the 2016 global market share figures, where Samsung occupies the top position with 21.6%. The Samsung brand is also dominant in South Africa, having captured 46% of the market share. Consumers are also willing to pay a price premium for Samsung mobile phones. For example, as at June 2017, the Samsung S8 smartphone retailed for up to R14,799, with consumers still willing to pay this price. While from an organisation’s perspective the success of Samsung in the mobile phone industry is accredited to the global establishment of production bases, overhaul of quality standards, paradigm shift in management philosophies and substantial investment in marketing and product design, there is a need to understand what drives Samsung’s brand equity from consumers’ perspective. The understanding of Samsung’s brand equity is even more important among Generation Y, due to the fact that they constitute 25% of South Africa’s population, have a high purchasing power for luxury and technological products, and 95% of them own a mobile phone in South Africa. They use their phones to communicate with family and friends, listen to music and watch YouTube videos. For the measurement of brand equity, so that marketers are informed of the performance of their marketing and brand strategies, researchers recommend the examination of its sources. Models devised by Aaker (1996) and Keller (1998) provide various sources of brand equity, but how and which of these sources best influence brand equity has not been determined. Esch, Langner, Schmitt and Geus (2006) recommend that in order to measure brand equity holistically, sources of brand equity, including brand awareness, brand image, perceived quality, brand associations and brand loyalty should be measured in conjunction with other important brand relationship factors such as brand trust, brand satisfaction and brand attachment or love. This is particularly so, because consumers who have a strong relationship with a brand are likely to demonstrate positive attitude towards it. Despite this view, most researchers who have adopted the Aaker (1996) and Keller (1998) models to measure CBBE have not considered the explanatory roles of the brand relationship variables. iv Another important factor ignored in the measurement of sources CBBE are the various values (such as functional, monetary, emotional, customisation, and relational), as proposed by Chuah, Marimuthu and Ramayah (2014), consumers enjoy from the consumption of a brand. Recognising the importance of uncovering the value inferences that consumers hold of a brand, Keller (2003) suggests three types of values or benefits (functional, experiential, and symbolic benefits) consumers may enjoy from a brand. The monetary value, according to other authors, can also be important. How these values lead to brand equity, if at all, were, however, not further explored. This study therefore integrated the Aaker and Keller’s brand equity models, Esch et al. and Chuah et al. brand relationship and consumer value models, respectively, to propose an integrated conceptual model with eighteen hypotheses to measure the sources of Samsung’s mobile phones brand equity among Generation Y. Quantitative methodologies were used to collect data from 651 undergraduate and postgraduate students studying at the University of Johannesburg and University of the Witwatersrand to empirically test the proposed model. The hypothesised relationships in the model were empirically tested using structural equation modeling. The results revealed that out of the eighteen hypotheses tested, twelve were accepted. Specifically, brand awareness, brand image, perceived quality, monetary value and functional value had a positive effect on brand satisfaction. Brand satisfaction positively drives brand love. Consumers who expressed love for the Samsung mobile phone brand were found to be loyal. Brand loyalty, which was found to have a positive impact on brand equity, was influenced positively by monetary value. In addition to brand loyalty, brand equity was influenced positively by perceived quality, monetary value and symbolic value. Overall, 56% of Samsung mobile phone brand equity was explained by brand awareness, brand image, perceived quality, monetary value, functional value, symbolic value, brand satisfaction, brand love and brand loyalty. While it will be important for future studies to identify other factors, which may increase the explanatory power of Samsung’s brand equity among Generation Y in South Africa, this study’s theoretical contribution suggests an integrated conceptual model to holistically measure customer-based brand equity not only in the telecommunication sector, but for other products and sectors. Practically, Samsung and other marketers responsible for managing competing v brands such as iPhone, Nokia, Huawei can use these findings to develop relevant marketing strategies that resonate with this large and lucrative Generation Y market segment. / GR2018

Mobile phone usage involves the mobile phone, the telecommunications system, mobile phone users, and the adoption and use of the system. Mobile communications is a complex and rapidly changing industry consisting of the hardware, software, network and business aspects. Mobile phone users are influenced by demographic, social, cultural and contextual factors that complicate the understanding of mobile phone usage. Advances in technology and market competition drive the addition of new services and features. In contrast, human cognition and attention are more constrained and many users find it difficult to cope with the cognitive demands of mobile phone technology. The aim of this study is to develop a model for representing the influence of motivational needs and cultural factors on mobile phone usage variety. The link between motivational needs and mobile phone usage variety, the cultural factors that influence mobile phone usage variety, as well as usage spaces as an approach to representing usage variety, are researched. The research encompasses a literature study, structured interviews, a pilot study and a survey. The pilot study and survey yielded data about mobile phone usage of university students under the age of 30 in South Africa. The results from the statistical analysis were triangulated with the findings of the literature study and the observations made about mobile phone usage during this two-year period. A final survey was conducted to verify the model. The contribution of this study is a mobile phone technology usage model (MOPTUM) for representing the motivational and cultural factors that influence mobile phone usage variety in such a way that users can use the model to express their mobile phone usage needs in non-technical terms while marketers and designers can use the model to convert the expressed user needs into the features required. MOPTUM draws on concepts and models from sociology, computer-supported cooperative work, human-computer interaction and technology adoption models from the field of marketing. MOPTUM verifies some existing findings on mobile phone usage and then integrates and extends these existing models to provide a new model for understanding the motivational and cultural factors that influence mobile phone usage variety. / Computing / Ph. D. (Computer Science)

A research report submitted to the Faculty of Commerce, Law and Management, University of the Witwatersrand, in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Management in Strategic Marketing, 2016 / Word-of-mouth (WOM) has been seen to be one of the most powerful resources of transmitting information. Progression in Information technology and the rise of online social network sites have changed the way information is being conveyed. This phenomenon sways consumers as this effortlessly accessible information could significantly influence their consumption decision. The purpose of this paper is to investigate Social Media factors impacting purchase intention of mobile devices amongst Working Generation Y in South Africa. The target population for this study was defined those who are between ages of 24-35 years of age and are employed. This paper relies on a quantitative analysis of the results gathered through an online survey. Measurement of items have been adapted from existing scales found in the marketing literature. Researchers reviewed the items for validity and readability. A multiple regression model procedure and Structural Equation Model is applied to test the relationship between independent and dependent variables. The research model was tested using a sample of 250 people who are South Africa’s Working Generation Y consumers and are regular social network users. Based on the resulted yielded from this research paper, it is reasonable to argue that consumer engagement will affect eWOM which may influence consumer purchase intentions. The paper outlines ways to promote a brand effectively through online consumer communities’ also known as virtual communities, as well as general guidelines for website and forum moderators for facilitating such presentation in a manner useful to the members of their online communities. While there is a substantial research stream that examines the branding of consumer’s goods and an increasing literature on product brands, little is known about social media, brand image and purchase intention in the context of online communications. This paper therefore extends existing measurement of these variables. / XL2018

Media promoting cultural tourism is argued to present specific romantic cultural attributes. In the case of Zulu cultural villages, the image offered is of militarism and bare-breasted maidens. The Western gaze offers the template within which such spectacle is constructed. PheZulu Safari Park is one such venture in the KwaZulu-Natal midlands that offers tourists a "uniquely African experience". Cell phones are rapidly proving to be a viable and accessible medium through which individuals can represent themselves. This dissertation evaluates the use of camera-enabled cell phones by Zulu cultural village performers. The subject-generated representation is analysed in order to assess the performers‘ view of the typical Zulu representation in the media, using a participatory video and participatory communication for development framework. A qualitative methodology was used to conduct focus groups, with field notes and unstructured interviews adding depth to the data. Thematic analysis was applied to the collected data, which included the cellphilms produced by the cultural performers. It was found that video enabled cell phones are indeed a viable technology to use in place of traditional digital video cameras in a participatory video project. The cellphilms that the participants produced negated the typical western media disseminated representation of Zulu culture, as is typified in the participants‘ performance at PheZulu Cultural Village. Although the cellphilms were not specifically targeted at promoting their cultural performance at PheZulu, significantly, it was not dismissing their performance‘s validity either. Instead, the participants used the cellphilms to express other, more personal, aspects of their culture. / M.Soc.Sc. University of KwaZulu-Natal, Durban 2013.

Background to the academic research. Hilton College is an all boys private school in the Kwa-Zulu Natal Midlands. Since the beginning of 2012 boys have been permitted to carry their phones during the school day, (Thomson, 2012). Wireless internet access was also extended across the campus to allow boys and staff to bring their own devices to class and have access to the internet (Machlachlan, 2012). In the past, communication between staff and boys was either verbal or through the use of a daily notice, called the Daily Routine Order (DRO). The DRO is placed at the dining room tables each day and boys are expected to check for any notices that may pertain to them. These notices are emailed to a secretary who prints them out and places them in the dining room each day at lunch. 2. Objectives to the research. This research sought to establish whether current communication methods were effective or whether the prevalence of mobile phones and wireless devices had presented the school with a more effective method. It was important therefore, to investigate what devices were on campus, how those devices were used and when they were used. In addition to this, the research sought to establish communication preference among staff and boys. 3. Research Methodology. The research was conducted through the use of a qualitative survey that was conducted among both staff and boys. Staff and boys were surveyed to establish generation, device prevalence, device usage and device preference. This data was collected using an anonymous qualitative survey that was administered through the use of Google docs in the school labs. 187 Boys in 3 grades 8 and 9 participated in the survey along with 18 staff members. The data was then analysed and compared to data from similar research that had been conducted elsewhere in the world. Because of significant age differences between boys and staff it was critical to establish whether device usage among staff and boys was tied to their generation. Of particular interest were the device behaviours associated with the Millennial generation, who were born between 1982-2002 (Strauss 2005:10). This generational ‘benchmark’ allowed the researcher to compare the Hilton College cohort to those whose device behaviours and usage had occurred and been discussed in generational research elsewhere. It also allowed for certain assumptions to be made about staff and boys based on their generational profile. 4. Findings It was found that staff and boys exhibited communication traits that were consistent with their generation and consistent with other research in this field. It was also found that staff and boys preferred mobile and digital forms of communication over verbal announcements and the DRO system. For this reason, it was recommended that the Hilton College establish a system that took advantage of technology to improve on communication. Various recommendations were given by the researcher that took advantage of current technologies. These included the use of SMS, Instant Messaging, Social Networks and email. It was also recommended that the school consider prescribing devices that allow for communication between staff and boys.