Globalization of E-Commerce: Growth and Impacts in the United States of America

The paper outlines a case study of US Ecommerce over the past 5 years. The case describes key factors that position the US for leadership in the realm of global Ecommerce, while pointing out inherent risk areas that could threaten this position. It does so utilizing a list of drivers and inhibitors as the basis for analysis in the context of an overview of the US National Environment; its inherent characteristics and their propensity to promote Ecommerce; the Governmental Policies that serve to enable the diffusion of Ecommerce; the level of Ecommerce Readiness that the US has attained through its infrastructure and societal characteristics; the resulting level of Ecommerce Diffusion and finally the Social and Economic Impacts that Ecommerce has had to date and is expected have in the future

E-Business Performance Analysis: A Case Of A Slovenian e-Shop

This paper is part of our on-going work in the field of business performance analysis in e-environment. We put forward a framework that tries to link different aspects of performance analysis and to relate them to broader business environment on the one hand, and to the value of a company on the other. We illustrate the use of the proposed framework with a case study examining the Slovenian home-store company Merkur, which operates one of the best Slovenian on-line shops. The framework can also serve as a tool for an empirical analysis

The suitability of wireless technologies for implementing an ebusiness infrastructure in Kenyan Micro and Small Enterprises.

Thesis (Ph.D.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, Westville, 2010.This thesis interrogates the suitability of wireless technologies to implement an eBusiness infrastructure in Micro and Small Enterprises (MSEs) in developing countries, particularly in Kenya. A research model was developed based on literature and information obtained from a pilot study. The proposed model extended Task-Technology Fit with two core constructs from the Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology. A preliminary study was conducted to refine the proposed model and inclusion of any variables limiting the suitability of wireless technologies as MSEs’ eBusiness infrastructure. The proposed model was empirically tested using data collected using a survey questionnaire and five descriptive case studies on MSEs in Kenya. A proportionate stratified random sampling method within well defined geographic clusters was used to collect data from 570 MSEs. The constructs were assessed for reliability, validity and exploratory factor analysis using SPSS and validated via a confirmatory factor analysis using Structural Equation Modeling with AMOS maximum likelihood method. Most Kenyans live in rural areas of the country with no access to mainstream technologies and a considerable digital divide exists, particularly between the urban and rural areas. This necessitated an intra-country comparison of access and use of wireless technologies in rural and urban MSEs in implementing an eBusiness infrastructure. The results of the intracountry comparisons indicate that while there are indisputable similarities in usage and perception of barriers and benefits of using wireless technologies to implement eBusiness infrastructure between the rural areas and urban centers in Kenya, there are also considerable differences. The relationships among the research model constructs were different depending on whether the sample was rural or urban. However, the differences between rural and urban MSEs’ ratings of the proposed research model constructs were not statistically significant. The study finds that there are evident positive performance impacts on MSEs that use wireless technologies for their eBusiness infrastructure and that the research model fit well with the data collected. The results also indicate that Task-Technology Fit and Usage directly and significantly affect organizational performance while Performance Expectance, Social Influence and Task-Technology Fit were significant determinants of Usage. Among the three proposed barriers of Security Risks, Affordability and Performance Risks, only Performance Risks had a significant negative effect on Usage. Finally, the study’s results, theoretical, managerial and policy implications are discussed and recommendations for future research given

The Role of E-Commerce Systems for the Construction Industry

The use of e-commerce systems has increased substantially in the past five years, and now a number of companies in the construction industry have joined consortiums to develop e-commerce portals. These new systems encourage companies to review the way in which existing processes are undertaken, and often re-engineered process are introduced. It is important to understand the difference between the terms e-commerce and e-business, e-commerce refers to buying and seeling transactions which use some24The Australian Journal of Construction Economics & Building Page (iii)form of electronic media, while e-business suggests a review and redefinition of business models linked to the greater use of IT. It is argued that the greater use of the internet and e-commerce, and the move towards the integration of applications will compel construction companies to re-engineer processes and introduce e-commerce systems. A series of business drivers and business designs are discussed in later sections of this paper.There are many benefits associated with the introduction of e-commerce systems, and these include increases in GDP, real wages and employment together with reduced transaction costs. It has been forecast that there will be more than 400,000 companies in Australia using e-commerce systems by 2005 (NOIE 2000). For the construction industry, the benefits will include increased project efficiencies, communications, control, and reduced design and construction times as well as reduced costs (BuildOnline 2000). In the past year, two local consortiums have been formed to develop and offer e-commerce applications, and this heightens the need for all companies to reflect on how they might engage with these new technologies

Technological Impediments to B2C Electronic Commerce: An Update

In 1999, Rose et al. identified six categories of technological impediments inhibiting the growth of electronic commerce: (1) download delays, (2) interface limitations, (3) search problems, (4) inadequate measures of Web application success, (5) security, and (6) a lack of Internet standards. This paper updates findings in the original paper by surveying the practitioner literature for the five-year period from June 1999 to June 2004. We identify how advances in technology both partially resolve concerns with the original technological impediments, and inhibit their full resolution. We find that, despite five years of technological progress, the six categories of technological impediments remain relevant. Furthermore, the maturation of e-Commerce increased the Internet\u27s complexity, making these impediments harder to address. Two kinds of complexity are especially relevant: evolutionary complexity, and skill complexity. Evolutionary complexity refers to the need to preserve the existing Internet and resolve impediments simultaneously. Unfortunately, because the Internet consists of multiple incompatible technologies, philosophies, and attitudes, additions to the Internet infrastructure are difficult to integrate. Skill complexity refers to the skill sets necessary for managing e-Commerce change. As the Internet evolves, more skills become relevant. Unfortunately, individuals, companies and organizations are unable to master and integrate all necessary skills. As a result, new features added to the Internet do not consider all relevant factors, and are thus sub-optimal. NOTE THAT THIS ARTICLE IS APPROXIMATELY 600kb. IF YOU USE A SLOW MODEM, IT MAY TAKE A WHILE TO LOA