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E-Commerce Solution
Introduction
In recent years, much has been written about
e-commerce and the way it has progressed and is going to change
our lives. E-commerce, variously described as cyber commerce-business,
EDP, EDI, electronic commerce, virtual shopping, virtual interaction,
e-shopping and electronic malls etc is an overworked horse. People
expect it to be a magic wand that rescues sick corporations, affects
the bottom line positively, builds customer loyalty and retention
and improves customer services while lowering costs. Agreed, that
it does all this. However cautioned optimism suggests that we
look beyond the hype surrounding it and look into what it and
what the future really holds for us.
E-commerce is the future. This is for sure. Some
people say it is already the present, what with the success stories
on the Internet around us. But to say so would be a bit too much,
too early. However, undoubtedly it still holds the key to the
future so we need to find out how best to utilize this force in
our favor. But first, we need to define it comprehensively to
get a fuller understanding
E-commerce is the set of electronic linkages
of people, organizations, banks, credit card companies, government
and the society with one another for the purpose of electronically
completing business processes. It encompasses diverse issues such
as electronic money, virtual payments, virtual delivery, authentication,
security, privacy issues, non-repudiation, taxation, cyber crime,
fraud prevention etc. In recent years, much has been written about
e-commerce and the way it has progressed and is going to change
our lives.
The socio-economic impact of e-commerce is far
too wide to be left to speculation. We shall be living in a computerized
and digitalized economy and society shaped by e-commerce. Higher
incomes and lower cost of communication, business and transactions
will make the world a true global economy. Therefore we need to
look at e-commerce from an objective viewpoint to really understand
its ramifications for us.
Business to customer e-commerce, i.e. shopping
websites and places where you browse through a selection of goods
and services and pay for through your credit cards is the most
common form of e-commerce. The press loves to write about it and
it gets the most publicity. Some of the most notable successes
are amazon.com, ebay.com, priceline.com etc. But it is business-to-business
e-commerce that will really drive the future of e-commerce and
shape the way it shapes our lives tomorrow.
Forester Research estimates that by 2003, consumers
will spend $108 billion to buy goods whereas $1.3 trillion will
be spent between businesses themselves. Computing and electronic
equipment will remain one of the largest categories of goods purchased
with turnover of $395 billion by 2003 and cars and petrochemicals
topping the $150 billion mark. Coming back to the electronic linkages,
we further need to know:
- What are these?
- Between who all these linkages need to
be made, and,
- How to go about making them. Let's explore.
1. What are these?
Linkages mean the virtual linkages that are necessary
between one or more than one parties to a transaction. E.g. if
there are three parties to a transaction A, B and C, then we need
to link all three to one another. These linkages are made over
communication networks such as the Internet, LANs, WANs, VANs,
VPNs, and Intranets. These linkages need to be secure enough to
guarantee secure transactions. This essentially means transactions
should happen between the desired parties only, crucial information
like financial details should not be revealed to any other party,
sensitive information like personal details should not spread
out, parties should be able to verify the other person's identity,
parties should not succeed in repudiation of identity earlier
verified as true and money should be firmly transacted without
fear of fraud or embezzlement.
2. Between whom all these linkages need to
be made?
All the concerned parties to any transaction
need to connect to one another. Some of the major stakeholders
are customers, suppliers, organizations, shareholders, investors,
banks, credit card companies, government and the society. These
people are a part of the complete value chain of a business from
the start to the end. Linking the complete set of people directly
or indirectly involved with the business is a major challenge.
3. How to go about making them?
This is the trickiest portion as actually doing
something is far more difficult than just talking about it. Fortunately,
thanks to the advent of the Internet, people can now link to one
another using off the shelf products and services. Authentication
services like Cybercash, Verisign and secure space providers give
people the flexibility to choose their options and join them to
form a quick solution. Professional expertise is still a must
for the spectacular results expected.
SolutionHut specializes in implementing e-commerce
products and services; SolutionHut also specializes in turnkey
projects, which encompass initial study or discovery, components'
assessment, consulting and ongoing support.
Our Resources
- Database Access
- Secure Server Setups (SSL2)
- Cybercash, E-Cash, FV PIN
- Secure Electronic Transaction Standard (Visa
& Master)
- Implementation of Taxation and Legal Issues
- Encryption Methodologies
- Value Added Services
- Electronic Data Interchange
- Project Implementation
We are already in the process of setting up websites,
that involve on-line trading. Our set-up has a Secured Server
(SSL2) and we utilize Electronic Identification signatures like
Verisign for member or subscriber based services. Clients can
safely give Credit Card details, which is the primary mode of
payment collection on the Internet. Internet Banks will remit
the charges for the products or services to any normal bank account
in USA or other country (foreign exchange policies permitting).
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