MODULE 5

E-commerce website???

 How can you base your business online? Requisites: A website Web hosting company Online merchant a/c Payment gateway Shopping cart

Payment gateway

Popular payment gateways

Assure buy Blue pay Paypal

Verisign eMatters Cybersource Payflow

Shopping cart

Functions and features of E-commerce

Features: Improves service, enhanced speed of
delivery Functions: Marketing and communication Online content and communication Health care Student services, Event and facility

Research
Admin Retailing

Unique features
Ubiquity Global reach Universal standandard Interactivity Information density and richness Personalization

Features and benefits of E-commerce

E-Commerce has got enormous potential benefits to organizations, individuals and society, due to :

The global nature of the technology The opportunity to reach millions of people Its interactive nature The variety of possibilities for its use The resourcefulness and rapid growth of its supporting infrastructure (especially the web)

Organizational benefits Global reach: can easily and quickly locate the best suppliers, more customers and more suitable business partners. i.e. buy cheaper and sell more. Cost reduction: EC decreases the cost of creating,

processing, distribution, storing and retrieving paper-based

information. Supply chain improvement: supply chain inefficiencies can be

minimized e.g.. Inventory and deliver delays

Extended hours:24/7/365 Customization: pull-type production (build-to-order)

 New business models: tendering (reverse auction), name-yourown-price model, affiliate marketing, viral marketing etc. Vendors specialization: EC enables high degree of specialization Lower communication cost: EC lowers telecommunications cost. Efficient procurement: EC can reduce administrative cost, purchasing prices, and reducing cycle time. Improved customer relations: EC enable close customer relations Up-to-date company material: EC enables company information to be updated by the minute No city business permits and fees

Consumer benefits
Ubiquity: EC allows shopping 24/7/365 from almost any location. More products and services: EC gives more choices. Cheaper products and services: EC providers price variety for goods and services Instant delivery: e.g. digitized product

Information availability: relevant and detailed information in seconds

Participate in auctions: virtual auctions Electronic communities: consumers can interact with other

consumers
Get it you way: customization and personalization of products and services

No sales tax: most online sales are tax free

Societal benefits Telecommuting: more people work and shop at home

Higher standard of living: competitive prices allow

lower income earners to shop more Hope for the poor: great opportunity for the poor to sell, buy and learn new skills Availability of public services: health care, education, and distribution of government social services can be done at a reduce cost to a large number of people.

Payment systems
Internet payment systems Credit cards on the internet Digi cash Cybercash First Virtuals pin system

First Virtuals pin system

Internet payment system Neither buyers nor sellers are required to install new software Internet email does not use encryption transactions are done using a First VirtualPIN A person's account is never charged without email verification from them accepting the charge. First Virtual uses email to communicate with a buyer to confirm charges against their account

First virtual: Account set up and costs

Two ways to setup as a seller on first virtual Internet payment system: Pioneer and Express Pioneer sellers program is designed for people who want to start selling their information over Internet

without establishing themselves as traditional sellers

requiring a credit check. Starts with online application. first virtual will e-mail a 12-digit application number and instructions to seller on how to send bank account information to first virtual via postal mail.

First virtual: Account set up and costs

The Express seller program is for those sellers who already have a credit card merchant available to accept credit card payments. Each buyer and seller must have an e-mail connection to Internet, but transactions can be completed through first virtual World Wide Web site.

First virtual transaction process

Applicant first fills out the form on web page displayed The merchant offers a product online, making it available through a first virtual compatible server on the Internet, including product pricing and description. A customer attempts to download the offered information from server, at which point the server requests a first virtual account identifier.

 The merchant has the option of verifying through first virtual that the account identifier is valid. The server sends a query to first virtual which responds by confirming that account ID is valid. The offered information is sent to buyer directly from merchant server The merchants server sends an e-mail message to first virtual detailing transaction: the buyer and seller account ID, the item purchased and the item price. First virtual sends an e-mail to customer, if the reply is yes the merchants account will be credited for that sale; if customer replies no, no further action is taken. If no response is received further attempts are made. Third option fraud is available to customer and is used to indicate transaction. This will cancel account ID of customer.

Infohaus (house of information)

First Virtuals internet payment system for secure business transaction. First Public access information mall. Mailing list software People can subscribe, unsubscribe, pay , renew, get back issues , change addresses. Eg: Newsbytes(electronic periodical)

Basic security issues

With transactions that involves E-payments, additional types of security must be confronted. Authentication: the process by which one entity verifies that another entity is who they claim to be.

Authorization: the process that ensures that a person has the right to access certain information
Auditing: the process of collecting information about attempts to access particular resources, use particular privileges, or perform other security actions

Basic security issues

Confidentiality (privacy): keeping a private or sensitive information from being disclosed to unauthorized individual, entities, or processes. Integrity: the ability to protect data from being altered or destroyed in an unauthorized or accidental manner. Availability: the ability of a person or a program to gain access to the pages, data, or services provided by the site when they need it. Nonrepudiation: the ability to limit parties from refuting that a legitimate transaction took place usually by the means of a signature

Cyber cash model

Financial transactions on the internet. Accepts both credit card and cash-coin payments. Merchants must establish a merchant account with a bank offering cyber cash pay option. Merchant receives information about customer order when a customer clicks the cyber cash pay button on the merchant website. Payment are signed and sent through merchant's bank a/c to cyber cash , which in turn passes the transaction to merchants bank for processing.

Security-customer protection
Customers are the focus of modern supply chains, proper management of internet supply chain is essential. Electronic privacy Information centre focus on protecting privacy. The Digital Millennium Copyright Act Of 1998: Copyrights laws for internet. Legal and ethical issues are important for the success of ecommerce.

Internet in hospitality
Hoteliers, Travel related service providers, Airlines, Car rental firms Small businesses gain a competitive advantage Direct internet consumer sales cut down the commission to travel agencies. Two main applications of internet in hospitality: E-booking E-tariff

E-Booking
Computerized reservation system Used to save and recover information and carry out transactions pertaining to travel. Hotels , Travel services, travel brokers, theatres, pilgrimage centres etc.. Online booking in hospitality industry is increasing tremendously.

E-tariff
Online solutions that allow the airline industry to uphold and develop multilateral interline fares and rules for systems and

consumers across the world.

e-Tariffs provides airline pricing experts with the tools to submit their proposals for changes, and vote on fares packages, directly from their desks. It has become the corner stone of the new traffic coordination mechanism.

 Key Benefits
Simplified meeting process Convenient and easy-to-use application Cost efficient - eliminates travel and meeting venue expenses Time efficient - eliminates travel time and effort

Reduced processing costs

Acceptable to regulators

E-tariff is the mechanism through which any changes are made

on Flex Fares, the product derived from tariff coordination.