E-Commerce and Society in the 21st Century

• The four waves of industry

• The emerging issues - the two sides of the coins

• The role of a government in EC

• Predictions for the 21st century

The four waves of industry

• The first wave – the farm-based industry structure following the

agricultural revolution

• The second wave – started after the industrial revolution. Factories

were developed with strict management control and strict division of labour.

• The third wave– started following the information revolution.

The central control began to give way to a distributed, team-based structure.

– the balance of power between buyers and changed

– co-operation between industries world-wide started.

• The fourth wave – an era of perceived integration and co-creation– organisations provide the leadership to create a

borderless world – stakeholders include entire countries,

ecosystems and natural resources.

The emerging issues for society

• The opposing viewpoints– Optimists boast about a global marketplace in

which people in all groups of society take part. – Pessimists worry about security, privacy,

abusive behaviour, social exclusion and criminal activity on-line.

• The two sides of the coin

Buyers and sellers

• Before EC sellers had the active role and the power

• EC has changed this. There is a shift of emphasis for businesses from shareholder value to customer satisfaction.

• Customisation rather than mass production

• Subsequent shift of power.

Large and small companies

• Employers of all sizes in e-commerce can create a global business capable of competing with others at equal level.

• However, larger companies enjoy the benefit of experience, stronger foundations and greater resources.

Employers and employees

• Employers – benefit from global knowledge-sharing, new alliances

and flexibility in the availability and cost of labour. They are also required to create an environment suitable for this highly dynamic workforce.

• Employees– gain from the flexibility and global kinship in

employment. However, there is pressure for them to be highly productive at all hours. They must also be aware of the shallowness of some ‘new’ jobs

Old and new generations

• The older generation often does not have the skill or the interest to benefit from e-commerce technology. While old people may dislike the unsocial environment of e-commerce, they can benefit from home-shopping and delivery, specialised products sold on-line etc.

• E-commerce offers young people who have the skill, interest and even the earning power to enjoy it and start new businesses. However, there is a danger due to over-exposure and lack of security.

Rich and poor

• Only high income groups have the means to buy PCs, acquire skills and utilise e-commerce as buyers and providers.

• Currently initiatives are being devised to include the poorer communities by creating community websites and providing IT facilities at a wider level.

Developed and developing countries

• For DCs, national B2C e-commerce is less important than national B2B plus international B2C and B2B.

• They must overcome the problems of the barriers to entry, poor infrastructure, risk of increased import and low competency in ICTs.

Global and local communities

• True globalisation involves re-distributing power according to local systems and acknowledging differences in tastes and cultural signifiers etc.

• This follows the concept of being more global yet more local in which locally-situated technology is used to run

global businesses. • On one hand the concept of cultures may blur, on the other

new communities based on history, religion and interests may be built. Some of the latter may not be beneficial to humankind.

Isolation and community building

• EC can create isolation by facilitating life from home.

• It can also help to create new communities, self-help groups and communities of practice for knowledge-sharing.

• However, it can provide a forum for immoral and unethical activities in close communities.

Control and freedom• The suitability of the Internet for publishing

unethical material, sending mass emails, creating information overload and collecting information on others and misusing it have given cause for concern.

• Governments can control and regulate the Internet by direct intervention, by co-ordinating international initiatives or by encouraging self-governance among organisations and international non-profit groups.

• Those advocating freedom of speech want complete anonymity by the encryption

• But criminals can create a safe haven by hiding behind encryption

• They can also intrude others’ systems by invading the core of a computer system.

• Efforts to control the Internet in the USA and the UK by using key escrow agencies have not succeeded.

• Concerns were raised about the possible abuse of the system by the key holders, loss of civil liberties and human rights. Also, inconsistencies between the laws of different countries make national regulations unworkable.

Women and men

• Women have always been marginalised in technology-related jobs.

• They are employed at low level jobs using PCs.

• However with this skill they can adapt to the Internet easily and work from home thus balancing family life with some earning power.

Europe USA World-wide

January 1994 5

October 1994 10

April 1995 7 17 15

October 1995 10 33 29

April 1996 15 34 31

October 1996 20 32 31

April 1997 15 33 31

October 1997 22 40 38

April 1998 16 41 39

Women as percentages of users of the

Internet

• Some women want to react to marginalisation by creating women-only websites

• Some others reject this as victim behaviour and want to fight on an equal basis as men.

• The third way is to battle with prejudice by demanding that women are given the resources to make progress.

Old and new form of learning

• Virtual classrooms can enable the marginalised groups to empower themselves.

• They can complement traditional teaching as well as create a forum for life-long learning.

• This equips people to acquire the skills necessary to meet the demands of EC.

Autocracy and democracy

• EC can facilitate democracy by enabling users to participate in debates and discussions cheaply and easily.

• Organisations can compete equally on the strength of their vision rather than organisational muscle.

• However, the above is counter-balanced by inequalities such as the lack of universal access, abuse of power and information overload due to frivolous use.

The role of a government and E-Commerce

An e-government can provide:– Better management of information through virtual

meetings

– Better access to advice from experts Better information service for citizens

– A framework for democratic decision-making involving both sides

– An infrastructure to support public services such as education and health.

Some activities an e-government could perform

• Use electronic polling to accommodate public opinion in decision making

• Facilitate electronic communication for police work

• Create inter-governmental communication

• Co-ordinate international regulations

• Establish effective copyright protection.

Predictions for the 21st century

DiGennaro (2001) predicts that by 2010– Life and work will be fully integrated

– People will increasing adopt community-centric work patterns

– Total connectivity will enable businesses to stay in permanent contact with employees and consumers

– Information workers will become free agents working in and managing global virtual businesses.

Neo-renaissance lifestyle

By 2015, a neo-renaissance lifestyle will develop in which life and work will become increasingly community-focused and conducted in workcentres built around communities.

However, this lifestyle will affect fewer than 40% of all information workers since significant co-ordination between employees and enterprises would be required to facilitate such lifestyle.

Neo-renaissance business culture

• The focus will shift from the corporate site to virtual offices, collaboration centres and virtual communities.

• By 2005, this will be a common practice.• By 2010, the virtual business manager may

manage a global business from home.

Jones (2001) predicts the following advances in technology in the near

future

• Wearable and personal computer and networking devices

• Powerful, versatile and multi-tasking devices

• Personal area networks (PAN) and wireless LANs

• Cheaper technologies

• Compatibility between wireless and wired networks

• Widespread availability of wireless Internet points.

Questions

• Where do you stand on the issues (the two sides of the coins) discussed in today’s lecture?

• How do you envisage life in the the year 2015 based on the technologies available today and the predictions for the future?

Case studies

• Dulux Paints

• The UK Home Repossessions Page

• The Art of Change

• Citizen Webpage in Bangalore