Abstract
A nation-wide, in-process study of digital television adoption shows what happens to the innovation-decision period when there is a deadline for phasing-out obsolete technology and simultaneously introducing a new continuing technology. In studies without a deadline the innovation-decision period gets longer with time. In this study, with a deadline the innovation-decision period gets shorter with time. If there is a clear-cut date for discontinuing an analogue service and introducing a new continuing digital service, late adopters can act fast and adopt the new digital technology in time for a deadline. This is contrary to their normal behavior. In the classic diffusion research late adopters were both socially and communicatively isolated. It is suggested that today late adopters may be socially – but not communicatively – isolated.
©2016 Walter de Gruyter GmbH, Berlin Boston
