E-Commerce.

Some of the definitions of e-commerce are:

*Electronic Commerce (EC) is where business transactions take place via telecommunications networks, especially the Internet.

(OR)*Buying and selling of products, services, and information via computer networks including the Internet.

(OR)*It is about doing business electronically.

(OR)*Defined as the conduct of a financial transaction by electronic means.

Electronic funds transfer (EFT) is the electronic exchange, transfer of money from one account to another, either within a single financial institution or across multiple institutions, through computer-based systems.

Electronic data interchange (EDI) is the structured transmission of data between organizations by electronic means, which is used to transfer electronic documents or business data from one computer system to another computer system, i.e. from one trading partner to another trading partner without human intervention.

E-BUSINESS

E-business is the conduct of business on the Internet, not only buying and selling but also servicing customers and collaborating with business partners.

E-business includes customer service (e-service) and intra-business tasks.

E-commerce relates more to macro environment whereas E-business relates more to micro level of the firm

Brief

History

Of

E-Commerce

1970s: (EFT) Used by banking industry to exchange account information over secured networksLate 1970s and early 1980s: (EDI)for e-commerce within companiesUsed by businesses to transmit data from one business to another 1990s: WWW on the Internet provides easy-to-use technology for information publishing and dissemination *Cheaper to do business (economies of scale)*Enable diverse business activities (economies of scope)

THEPROCESSOFE-COMMERCE

◦A consumer uses Web browser to connect to the homepage of a merchant's Website on the Internet

◦The Consumer browses the catalogue of products featured on the site and selects items to purchase .The selected items are placed in the electronic equivalentof a shopping cart.

◦When the consumer is ready to complete the purchase of selected items, she/he provides a bill-to and ship-to address for purchase and delivery.

◦ When the merchant's Web server receives this information, it computes the total cost of the order—including tax, shipping, and handling charges—and then displays the total to the customer

◦The customer can now provide payment information, such as a credit card number, and then submit the order

◦When the credit card number is validated and the order is completed at the Commerce Server site, the merchant's site displays a receipt confirming the customer's purchase

◦The commerce Server site then forwards the order to a Processing Network for payment processing and fulfilment

Types ofE-commerce

Classification of e-commerce is done by identifying the partners directly involved in the transaction.

Business-to-Business (B-to-B):The exchange of products, services or informationbetween business entities.E.g:alibaba.com

Business-to-consumer (B-to-C) The exchange of products, information or servicesbetween business and consumers in a retailing relationship.E.g.: amazon.com

Business-to-Government (B-to-G)The exchange of information, services, products between business organisations and government agencies on-line.

Business-to-Peer Networks (B-to-P) This would be the provision of hardware, software or other services to the peer networks. An example here would be Napster who provided the software and facilities to enable peer networking

Consumer-to-Business (C-to-B) This is the exchange of products, information or services from individuals to business. A classic example of this would be individuals selling their services to businesses.

Consumer-to-Consumer (C-to-C) In this category consumers interact directly with other consumers.E.g:ebay.com

Government-to-Business (G-to-B) The exchange of information, services and products between government agencies and business organisations

Government-to-Consumer (G-to-C). Government sites offering information, forms and facilities to conduct transactions for individuals, including paying bills and submitting official forms on-line such as tax returns.

Peer–to-Peer Network (P-to-P)This is the communications model in which each party has the same capabilities and either party can initiate a communication session.E.g:Skype

List of Top E-commerce Companies of India:1.Flipkart.com

2.snapdeal.com

3.Fashionandyou.com

4.myntra.com

5.dealsandyou.com

6.ebay.com

7.homeshop18.com

8.naaptol.com

9.Rediffshopping

10.99labels.com

Advantages of Ecommerce

▪Faster buying/selling procedure, as well as easy to find products.▪ Buying/selling 24/7.▪ More reach to customers, there is no theoretical geographic limitations.▪ Low operational costs and better quality of services.▪ No need of physical company set-ups. ▪ Easy to start and manage a business.▪ Customers can easily select products from different providers without moving around physically.

Disadvantages of Ecommerce▪ There are many bad sites which eat up customers’ money. ▪ There is no guarantee of product quality.▪ Mechanical failures can cause unpredictable effects on the total processes.▪ As there is minimum chance of direct customer to company interactions, customer loyalty is always on a check.▪ There are many hackers who look for opportunities, and thus an ecommerce site, service, payment gateways, all are always prone to attack.

M-Commerce:

□M-commerce (mobile commerce) is the buying and selling of goods and services through wireless technology-i.e., handheld devices such as cellular phones.

->Mobile banking.->Information services.->Mobile reservation.

Greeshma.T