As the Internet empowers citizens and democratize socities, it is also changing the way business is conducted: entrepreneurs are able to start new businesses more easily by accessing the internet's worldwide network of cusotmers; world trade involving computer software, entertainment products, information services, professional consulting, financial services, education businesses, medical diagnostics, advertising and technical services is increasing rapidly as internet dramatically lowers costs and facilitates new types of commercial transactions; engineers, product developers, and managers thousands of miles apart can collaborate to design and manufacture new products more efficiently; business can work more efficiently with their suppliers and customers; consumers have greater choice and can shop in their homes for a wide variety of products from manufacturers and retailers all over the world and they will be able to view these products on their computers or televisions; access information about the products, and order and pay for their choices all from their living rooms.

According to several estimates, commerce on the internet will total tens of billions of dollars by the turn of the century and could expand rapidly after that, helping fuel economic growth well into 21 st century. (Clinton)

I feel that electronic commerce will enable U.S. companies to increase productivity and adaptability to changing markets. Electronic Commerce will provide an integrated collection of low cost, reliable services to handle tremendous volumes of business and technical transactions and analyze and control large quantities of data. Businesses will be able to improve efficiency and accuracy and reduce costs, while providing faster, more reliable and more convenient services. Smaller firms will be able to enter and participate at lower cost and with greater efficiency in new markets and larger firms will be able to evaluate, select and more readily work with other companies. New ways of doing business and new forms of economic activities will become common place, including telecommuting, global sourcing arrangements, new training and education capabilities.

The following are some examples of the impact of Electronic Commerce:

1) The number of sales transacted on the Web stood at roughly $200 million in 1995, according to Boston -based Forrester Research. By 1997 , that number had grown to $8 billon. This year , it's expected to reach $17 billion, then experience a growth spurt until it hits $327 billion by the 2002 and $1 trillion by 2010. (Ellison).

2) The number of internet users over the age of 16 in US and Canada has reached 79 million, while the number people buying products and services via the web has hit 20 million according to a new Nielsen Media Research and Commerce Net study on the Internet Commerce. The study also shows that the number of web shoppers -- people checking out or comparing products and services on the web is now at 48 million. In 1998 the number of people shopped on the web rose by 36 per cent compared with September 1997. Loel Mcphee, director of research at Commerce Net. " I feel that the dramatic increase in online purchasing is primarily due to people realizing how quickly and easy it is to shop on the web. What we're seeing is the impact of branding, word-of-mouth and consumer trust."(Number of Internet Users)

3) All goods and services - travel, books, cars, groceries, real estate - now sold and purchased on the internet. Business transacted on the Net, while only about 1% of the nation's economy, is sky rocketing and that's helping drive prices of internet stocks such as Yahoo and Amazon.com to astronomical levels, far beyond what's justified by their actual value and profitability.

Some of the benefits of Electronic Commerce are:

1) Reduced costs to buyers from increased competition in procurement as more suppliers are able to compete in an electronically open market place.

2) Reduced errrors, time and overhead costs information processing by eliminating requirements for re-entering data.

3) Reduced costs to suppliers by electronically accessing on-line databases of bid opportunities, on-line abilities to submit bids and online review of awards.

4) Reduced time to complete business transactions, particularly reduced time from delivery to payments.

5) Faster time to market as business processes are linked enabling virtual elimination of time delays between steps and the engineering of each sub process with in the whole process for seemingly seemless processing.

6) Reduced inventories and a related reduction of risk of obsolete inventories as the demand for goods and services are electronically linked through just-in-time inventory and integrated manufacturing techniques.

7) Reduced overhead costs throught uniformity, automation and large scale integration of management processes which enables flatter, wider, more efficient processes.

The internet will become the United State's most active trade vehicle within a decade, creating millions of high paying jobs. In addition, internet shopping may revolutionize retailing by allowing consumers to sit in their homes and buy a wide variety of products and services from all over the world.

 

Electronic Commerce- Social Aspects

Electronic Commerce- Case Studies

Electronic Commerce- Computer Network Resources

Adam, Nabil R., and Yelena, Yesha. Electronic Commerce: Current Research Issues & Applications. New York: Springer-Verlage, 1996.

Bahree, Bhushan. "U.S. Push for WTO to Declare Internet A Tariff-Free Zone Closes In on Success." Wall Street Journal , 23 April 1998:B2.

Baum, David. "The Renaissance of Commerce." 7 December 1998. The Oracle Applications Magazine. 7 December 1998. <http://www.oramag.com/profit/98-Feb/com.html>.

Burnham, Bill. The Electronic Commerce Report. New York: Mc Graw-Hill Companies, 1998.

Cameron, Debra, Electronic Commerce: The New Business Platform for the Internet. Charleston. Computer Tehnology Research, 1997.

"Cashing In On E-Commerce." 7 December 1998. Zdnet. 7 December 1998. <http://www.zdnet.com/sr/stories/issue/0,4537,2156306,00.html/>.

"Challenges of ' E-Commerce'."The Los Angeles Times. 19 Jul. 1998: 4.

Chesher, Michael and R Kaura. Electronic Commerce & Business Communications. New York: Springer-Verlage, 1998.

Clinton, William. Presidential Directive: Memorandum for the Heads of Executive Departments and Agencies, 1 July 1997. The White House Office of the Press Secretary. 4 Nov 1998. <http://www.whitehouse.gov/WH/New/Commerce/directive.html>

E-Commerce Management Consulting. 18 November, 1998. Shaffer Consulting. 7 December, 1998. <http://www.shaferconsulting.com/>.

E-Commerce Times: Online Media Kit. 7 December 1998. E- Commerce Times. 7 December 1998. <http://www.ecommercetimes.com/publication-info/>.

"Electronic Commerce Resource Center". Defense Logistics Agency. <http://www.ecrc.ctc.com/>. 1997. [Accessed 23 Nov 98].

Ellision, Carol.Commerce Becomes E-commerce.VAR Business, 6 Jul 1998: 118-120+. Business & Management Practices. Dialogweb. Accessed 10 Nov 98. <http://www.dialogweb.com/cgi/dwclient>.

Evan, Schwartz's.Webonomics. City, New Hampshire: Broadway Books, 1997.

The author shows how the new Web Economy exhibits entirely unique properties of its own. Using numerous case studies of corporations such as IBM, Volvo, Playboy Enterprises and Well Fargo Bank, as well as smaller companies and web-based start-ups, Schwartz includes both the failures and the successes on the Web in a multitude of industries. Webonomics tells a story about the life in the Information Age. About rising new communities, to the next phase of capitalism, a shift in the role of government, and surviving amidst accelerating change, where only the most agile and adaptable businesses will thrive.

 Gantz, John. "How to Prosper in the New Internet." Computerworld, 22 June 1998: 58. Academic ASAP. Infotrac. 3 Dec. 1998.

"Government Is Needed For E-Commerce Growth". 7 December 1998. E-Commerce Times. 7 December 1998.<http://www.ecommercetimes.com/news/articles/981207-shtml>.

Hagel, John and Arthur G. Armstrong. Net Gain: Expanding Markets through Virtual Communities. Harvard: Harvard Business School Publishing, 1997.

Hormats, Robert D. "Foriegn Policy by Internet." The Washington Post. 29 Jul 1997: A, 15.

"Information Processing and Information Systems: Information systems: IMPACT OF COMPUTER-BASED INFORMATION SYSTEMS ON SOCIETY: Effects on the economy. " Britannica Online.<http://www.eb.com:180/cgi-bin/g?DocF=macro/5003/15/39.html> [Accessed 24 November 1998]

Jamison, Brian and Josh Gold. Electronic Selling: Internet Transactions Made Simple. New York: Mc Graw-Hill Companies, 1998.

The author has designed this book for businesspeople and "cyberpreneurs: who want to make moneyon the Internet, not do programming for it. Written at a level easy to understand. E-Cash answers the pressing questions posed by marketers, Webmasters and entrepreneurs: in doing business on the Internet, how to process orders? Accept payments? and make sure that the customers' credit card numbers a kept secure? The authors explain how to beat the security bug and succeed at electronic selling.

Kalakota, Ravi and Andrew B. Whinston.Electronic Commerce: A Manager's Guide. New York. Addison Wesley Pub Co, 1996.

The book is designed to prepare business decision makers for the 'new' economic model of electronic selling and buying, and describes what challenges are to be met. The authors emphasizes the challenges and opportunities of conducting business on the information superhighway. The book is a thoroughly researched evaluation of the management and technology issues relevant to this increasingly vital and rapidly changing field. The volume highlights customer-to-business, intrabusiness, and business-to-business transactions with pratical examples and the author's authoritative opinions. The book is the outcome of four years of research into what makes electronic commerce the next step for business computing and would recommend it to anyone who wants to know about E Commerce.

Lysbeth B, Chuck."The Digital Economy Keeps Emerging." Searcher, 6.7 (July 1998), 16-18. Bamp Dialog Web. Accessed 10 November 1998.<http://www.dialogweb.com/cdi/dwclient>

Maddox, Kate.Web Commerce. New York: John Wiley & Sons, Incorporated, 1998.

In Web Commerce the author Kate Maddox provides managers with all the information they need toknow -from software and hardware options to strategizing effectively for a particular business to security issues to the future of web commerce. The book details the method that companies as diverse as Cisco, AT&T and Broadvision are using to sell their products electronically and to tap into a market place with explosive growth potential. Maddox describes how companies, both large and small are taking their Websites to the next level, moving from merely marketing and promoting products online to actually selling them. Specific questions and important business issues related to e commerce are addressed in detail and over two dozen examples are offered of companies that are setting the benchmark for successful Web Commerce. I believe Kate Maddox is explaining the importance of Web Commerce and its success. She has looked at major companies like Cisco, AT&T and Broadvision to justify how they have implemented web commerce to increase the number of customers they can reach at low cost. Which is what every business needs.

Maxwell, Bruce. How to Access the Federal Government on the Internet 1999; Washington Online. Washington, D.C.: Congressional Quarterly, 1998.

The author provides a guide to the Federal government's information superhigway which provides 300 Federal Internet sites and resources, organized by topics such as information access, business, defense, energy, foriegn affairs, history, jobs, law and science and technology. Entries explain access to each site and offer tips for searching selected sites. An introduction gives advice on beginning a search for federal government information. For novice to experienced users.

 Morris, David. "Can Communities Survive Electronic Commerce?" Institute for Local Self-Reliance. <http://www.ilsr.org/columns/021098.html>.10 February 1998. [Accessed 27 October 1998]

"Number of Internet Users and Shoppers Surges in United States and Canada". 24 Aug 1998/PRNewswire.Commercenet. Accessed 4 Nov 1998. <http://www.commerce.net/news/press/19980824b.html>.

Pageant Limited Staff.The Electronic Commerce Handbook 1996. New York: Blackwell Publishers, 1996.

Patnayakuni, Ravi,"Electronic Commerce: Economics of Markets, Distribution and Pricing." BA 548E: Special Topics in MIS Electronic Information Infrastructures. 27 September 1995. Southern Illinios University. [Accessed 6 October 1998]. <http://www.siu.edu/departments/coba/mgmt/eii/ravip/>

Reed, Sandy. "Internet Companies are Rewriting the Accepted Rules of the 'Old'." Info World 2 Nov 1998: 67 Academic ASAP. . Infotrac. 3 Dec 98.

Robert, D. Hof and Gary McWilliams. "The Click Here Economy". 11 June 1998. Businessweek.<http://www.businessweek.com/1998/25/itspec98.htm/>

Schroeder, Ron. "Electrifying the Links in the Supply Chain." Electronic News 11 May 1998: 36+.

Skilling, Van, "The Role of Government in Electronic Commerce: A Call for One Consistent National Information Policy." 22 October 1997. <http://www.experian.com/corporate/speeches/102297.html>. [Accessed 6 October 1998].

"Some 57 Percent To Use E-Commerce By 1999 - Study." Newsbytes 12 October 1998. n.p.

Tapscott, Don. Blueprint to the Digital Economy. New York: Mc Graw Hill Book Company, 1998.

The main point of the author Don Tapscott, has been to explain the digital revolution and the impact on today's businesses. Based on seminal research conducted by The Alliance for Converging Technologies, which brings together over 30 world-class organizations. Blueprint to the Digital Economy provides important insight into the emerging digital environment and how it is changing today's workplace. Each chapter of Blueprint is authored by a member of the Alliance, all senior strategists and CEO's from today's most influential businesses-companies such as General Motors, Hewlitt-Packard, IBM, MCI and Nortel. Each covers a core area of the digital revolution, such as the transformation of the financial services or the use of networks to improve organizational agility. Don Tapscott concludes, "Our political and social Infrastructure must be radically transformed if we are to take full advantage of the possibilities opened by the technologies under pinning cyberspace."(398). Here the author believes there needs to be a lot changes made by the Government and Society before we get the full benefits of Cyberspace, but he doesn't satisfactorily justify his statement even though he gives an example like commuting by car which pollutes, take time, consumes energy and is costly in terms of physical structure, yet most people take their car to work and to shop. I believe as businesses see the efficiency of Cyberspace the political and social structure will be automatically transformed. The big question is how and when will this take place?

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These materials are copyrighted, but may be used for educational purposes if you inform and credit the author and cite the source as: LSCI 105 Computerized Research. All commercial rights are reserved. Send comments or suggestions to: Eric Brenner at brenner@smcccd.cc.ca.us