Navigating the Cloud: Exploring Gamer Switching Behavior, Service Quality, and Service Failure Management in Cloud Gaming

Abstract

This thesis investigates critical aspects of cloud gaming, focusing on gamer behavior, service quality measurement, and service failure management through three interrelated studies. The rapid adoption of cloud gaming represents a significant shift from traditional means of gaming, requiring gamers to adapt to a new paradigm where computation and storage are offloaded to cloud servers. Study 1 applies the Push-Pull-Mooring (PPM) model to explore the antecedents of gamers’ switching behavior from traditional gaming to cloud gaming. The findings highlight key push factors, such as rising hardware costs and the limitations of traditional gaming, as well as pull factors such as the convenience and cross-device compatibility of cloud gaming. The study also identifies significant mooring factors, including habitual behavior and emotional attachment to traditional gaming, which act as barriers to switching. Study 2 develops a specialized service quality measurement tool tailored for cloud gaming, expanding traditional service quality models to account for the unique demands of this highly technical service. The tool divides service quality into two dimensions: technical service quality and support service quality. The study validates this tool through empirical analysis, providing cloud gaming service providers with a systematic method for assessing and improving service performance across technical and support domains. Study 3 examines the impact of service failures in cloud gaming, utilizing Expectation-Disconfirmation Theory (EDT) and Stimulus-Organism-Response (SOR) theory. The study categorizes service failures into network disruptions, latency issues, and game crashes. It explores how these failures trigger emotional and cognitive responses that influence gamers’ decisions to continue using cloud gaming services. The results demonstrate that different types of failures provoke varying emotional and behavioral outcomes, with significant implications for user retention and service recovery strategies. Collectively, this thesis contributes to the fields of technology adoption, service quality assessment, and service failure management by expanding existing theoretical frameworks and providing practical insights for cloud gaming service providers. The research highlights the importance of understanding gamer motivations, optimizing service quality, and effectively managing service failures to ensure long-term user satisfaction and loyalty in the growing cloud gaming market.