Information Technology Revolution E-Commerce to E-Business

Abstract

Emergence of computers, telecommunications technologies, and the Internet has transformed the business and its operation all over the world. These technological developments are transforming traditional commerce activities into electronic commerce and business into electronic business. In India, although the total volume of business through e-commerce is not very large, it is growing very fast.

The growth is likely to accelerate with the wide spread of mobile phones and the growing knowledge of its use for different activities. The recent release of 3G spectrum by the Government of India to Indian telecom service providers will have a significant impact in improving the telecom infrastructure capability and expanding the networking all over the country, which in turn will give a big push to e-commerce. A country like India can become industrialized and modernized if it can extensively apply IT to enhance productivity and international competitiveness and develop e-commerce and e-governance applications. An information-based society or knowledge-based society is composed of IT products and IT applications in the society and economy as a whole. Many Asian countries are taking advantage of e-commerce through the opening of economies, which is essential for promoting competition and diffusion of Internet technologies. The Internet is boosting efficiency and enhancing market integration in developing countries. Mckinsey Quarterly , 1 a business journal, has predicted that Asia’s emerging markets are poised for explosive digital growth. China and India together have some 500 million Internet users, which is likely to increase by 700 million more by 2015. It is estimated that within five years, this increase may generate revenues of more than US$80 billion in Internet commerce, access fees, device sales and so forth. At present in India, only 7 per cent of the population, that is, about 81 million people, is using the Internet. Mckinsey Quarterly has forecasted that by 2015, the number of Internet users will increase to almost more than 350 million. Further, it has forecasted that about more than 50 per cent of these users will be accessing the web via mobile phones.

The following sections discuss about the information and electronic revolution and its impact on business and about the evolution of e-commerce, its various models and the opportunities they have created for business. Further, the sections discuss the status of e-commerce in India, its future prospects and so on.