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Electronic commerce (e-commerce) is increasingly
discussed and written about in today’s knowledge-based
economies. Although there are currently no internationally
agreed-upon definitions of e-commerce, the OECD (Organization
for Economic Co-operation and Development) defines e-commerce
transactions as: the sale or purchase of goods or services,
whether between businesses, households, individuals,
governments, and other public or private organisations,
conducted over computer-mediated networks. The goods and
services are ordered over those networks, but the payment and
the ultimate delivery of the good or service may be conducted
on or off-line. The concept of e-commerce extends into
communications, promotion, customer service, statistics, and
usage patterns. However, often overlooked when examining
e-commerce acceptance or failure is the social and cultural
impact of conducting conventional business transactions over
the Internet.
The absence of an agreed-upon definition
for e-commerce creates a challenge when comparing e-commerce
modalities in different countries. For some people, e-commerce
is limited to credit-card transactions that take place over
the Internet. For others, e-commerce means using any
electronic device to purchase goods or services. The entire
e-commerce process is complex and requires meticulous and
well-informed planning to succeed. Businesses need to look
beyond issues such as what products and services to offer, how
to design and maintain a portal, and how to handle security
issues. They must closely examine less tangible, but equally
important issues, such as social and cultural norms in the
region; sustainable funding strategies, and the formation of
strategic partnerships.
E-commerce can be divided
into primarily three categories:
• Business to
Consumer (B2C): where enterprises sell directly to the
consumer, often cutting out (‘disintermediating’) wholesalers
or ‘bricks and mortar’ retail outlets. B2C is the most
commonly understood form of Internet business – as typified by
the on-line retailers such as the bookseller and general
retailer Amazon (http://www.amazon.com/) ,whom some credit
with ‘inventing’ e-commerce. The most successful B2C trading
has been with standard products such as cds, books, software,
downloadable music etc. Many high-profile companies, such as
Amazon and Yahoo! however have yet to make a profit, even in
the USA, where e-commerce is most advanced.
•
Business to Business (B2B): where enterprises use ICT22and
the Internet to enhance the whole range of business to
business activities. This includes procurement of raw
materials and supplies, liaison with contractors and sales
channels, servicing customers collaborating with partners,
integrated management of data and knowledge, etc. B2B
activities can take place across both public networks (such as
the Internet) and private systems. Because companies purchase
in much greater quantities than consumers, B2B is expected to
be the fastest growing sector of e-commerce, accounting for
80% by 2005.
• Business-to-government (B2G):
where businesses trade directly with government offices and
agencies for public procurement (eg supplies for hospitals,
schools and other government contracts).
India: Direct Marketing of Artisanal
Products for example Indiasocial.org uses information and
communications technologies (ICTs) to create a bridge between
artisanal clusters in India and their potential markets. These
previously isolated groups can now build on local knowledge
and use ICTs to develop a comprehensive, cost-effective way to
market their products globally. Four clusters of artisans
participated in this pilot project.
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