WHAT IS E-COMMERCE &
E-BUSINESS
• E-commerce the use of the Internet, • E-business the digital enabling of
the Web, and mobile apps and transactions and processes within a
browsers running on mobile devices to firm, involving information systems
transact business. under the control of the firm.
• More formally, digitally enabled
• E-business includes the entire world
commercial transactions between and
of internal and external electronically
among organizations and individuals
based activities, including e-
commerce.
TECHNOLOGICAL BUILDING
BLOCKS UNDERLYING E-
COMMERCE
• Internet worldwide network of computer networks built on common
standards.
• World wide web (the web) an information system running on internet
infrastructure that provides access to billions of web pages
• Mobile platform provides the ability to access the internet from a
variety of mobile devices such as smartphones and tablets
UNIQUE FEATURES OF E-
COMMERCE TECHNOLOGY
UNIQUE FEATURES OF E-
COMMERCE TECHNOLOGY
• Ubiquity E-commerce technology is available everywhere: at work, at
home, and elsewhere via mobile devices, anytime.
• Global reach The technology reaches across national boundaries, around
the earth.
• Universal standards There is one set of technology standards.
• Richness Video, audio, and text messages are possible.
• Interactivity The technology works through interaction with the user.
• Information density The technology reduces information costs and raises
quality.
• Personalization/Customization The technology allows personalized
messages to be delivered to individuals as well as groups.
• Social technology User create content and social networks.
TYPES OF E-COMMERCE
• Business-to-consumer (B2C) e-commerce online businesses selling to
individual consumers.
• Business-to-business (B2B) e-commerce online businesses selling to other
businesses.
• Consumer-to-consumer (C2C) e-commerce consumers selling to other
consumers
• Mobile E-commerce (m-commerce) use of mobile devices to enable online
transactions
• Social E-commerce enabled by social networks and online social relationships
• Local E-commerce that is focused on engaging the consumer based on his or
her current geographic location
E-COMMERCE: A BRIEF
HISTORY
E-commerce has gone through three stages: innovation, consolidation, and
reinvention.
• The early years of e-commerce were a technological success, with the
digital infrastructure created during the period solid enough to sustain
significant growth in e-commerce during the next decade, and a mixed
business success, with significant revenue growth and customer usage, but
low profit margins.
• E-commerce entered a period of union beginning in 2001 and extending
into 2006.
• E-commerce entered a period of reinvention in 2007 with the emergence of
the mobile digital platform, social networks, and Web 2.0 applications that
attracted huge audiences in a very short time period.
MAJOR THEMES UNDERLYING
THE STUDY OF E-COMMERCE.
• E-commerce involves three wide interrelated themes:
• Technology
• Business
• Society
MAJOR THEMES UNDERLYING
THE STUDY OF E-COMMERCE.
Technology
• To understand e-commerce, you need a basic understanding of the
information technologies upon which it is built, including the Internet,
the Web, and mobile platform, and a host of complementary
technologies cloud computing, desktop computers, smartphones, tablet
computers, local area networks, client/server computing, packet-
switched communications, protocols such as TCP/IP, web servers,
HTML, and relational and non-relational databases, among others.
MAJOR THEMES UNDERLYING
THE STUDY OF E-COMMERCE.
Business
• While technology provides the infrastructure, it is the business
applications the potential for strange returns on investment that create
the interest and excitement in e-commerce.
• Therefore, you also need to understand some key business concepts
such as electronic markets, information goods, business models, firm
and industry value chains, industry structure, and consumer behavior
in digital markets.
MAJOR THEMES UNDERLYING
THE STUDY OF E-COMMERCE.
Society
• Understanding the pressures that global e-commerce places on
contemporary society is critical to being successful in the e-commerce
marketplace.
• The primary societal issues are intellectual property, individual
privacy, and public policy.
THE MAJOR ACADEMIC
DISCIPLINES CONTRIBUTING TO
E-COMMERCE.
• There are two primary approaches to e-commerce: technical and
behavioral.
• Each of these approaches is represented by several academic
disciplines.
• On the technical side, this includes computer science, operations
management, and information systems.
• On the behavioral side, it includes information systems as well as
sociology, economics, finance and accounting, management, and
marketing.
