Abstract:

Small And Medium Enterprises (SMEs) and Information and Communication Technology (ICT) are two important sectors in Malaysia.  in 2005, there are 518,996 (99.2%) SMEs in the country.  Through many government programmes, SMEs have been allocated various ICT funds to assist them to adopt ICT.  This is because ICT is regarded as enabler to bring up the competitive level of SMEs in business arena. This paper, therefore, examines the moderating factors that may affect the adoption of internet-based information and communication technologies (ICT) among SMEs in Malaysia. The unified theory of acceptance and use of technology (UTAUT) underpins the conceptual framework in this paper. Questionnaire-based survey was used to collect data from 406 managers/owners of SMEs in the southern region of Malaysia. Data analysis indicates manufacturing and service SMEs are affected by different moderating variables in their intention to adopt ICT.  The findings are discussed and interpreted to provide key implications to SMEs and Malaysian government.