Download time and intent to use a web page: Working paper series--02-09

The World-Wide Web (WWW) has grown, and continues to grow, at an epic rate. Unlike applications software, which provides a structured navigation schema, the web encourages users to move frequently from page to page. In most cases, a web site has only one chance to make a favorable first impression. If a web page takes more than a few seconds to present this first impression, the user may decide to abandon or "bail out" from the current site and move to another site. The result of failure to deliver information to the user in a "reasonable" amount of time to a commercial web site is the loss of business--possibly forever. This research indicates that web page download time has both direct and antecedent effects on a user's behavioral intent to use a web page. In addition, this research indicates that traditional models used to assess behavioral intent and subsequent usage of applications software may not be useful in evaluating a user's intent to use a web page and that alternative predictive models should be evaluated