Abstract
Purpose: While the goal of 65% of adults exercising and playing sports at least one day a week has been set, the actual achievement figures are far lower. It is assumed that some people are too busy with work and household chores to increase the frequency of sports activities, and that existing sports services do not function sufficiently to meet their needs. This study determined consumer acceptance and its supporting factors for a new sports participation service, Sport Coaching Skill Sharing (SCSS). The technology acceptance model (TAM) was used to test the relationship between technological factors of the SCSS (perceived usefulness, perceived ease of use, personal innovativeness, perceived risk, and intentions to use the SCSS). Methods: An internet survey was conducted among people aged 20 to 69 who work out or practice sports more than once a year. Path analysis was conducted to test a hypothetical model of the relationship between intention to use SCSS and the aforementioned factors. Results: Perceived usefulness and ease of use had a positive effect on intention to use, and the path of perceived ease of use to perceived usefulness was also significant. These results supported the use of TAM as a model to explain consumer acceptance of SCSS. The results showed that personal innovativeness positively affects intention to use, perceived usefulness, and perceived ease of use. However, the hypothesis that personal innovativeness has a negative effect on perceived risk was rejected, as a result of its positive effect. Furthermore, perceived risk did not have a significant effect on intention to use and had a positive effect on perceived usefulness and perceived ease of use. All hypotheses about perceived risk were rejected. Conclusions: The findings suggest that it is important to make potential users aware of the usefulness of SCSS and to enhance the usability of the SCSS platform.
