HISTORY OF ECOMMERCE

 

 

 

History of ecommerce dates back to the invention of the very old notion of "sell and buy", electricity, cables, computers, modems, and the Internet. Ecommerce became possible in 1991 when the Internet was opened to commercial use. Since that date thousands of businesses have taken up residence at web sites.

At first, the term ecommerce meant the process of execution of commercial transactions electronically with the help of the leading technologies such as Electronic Data Interchange (EDI) and Electronic Funds Transfer (EFT) which gave an opportunity for users to exchange business information and do electronic transactions. The ability to use these technologies appeared in the late 1970s and allowed business companies and organizations to send commercial documentation electronically.

Although the Internet began to advance in popularity among the general public in 1994, it took approximately four years to develop the security protocols (for example, HTTP) and DSL which allowed rapid access and a persistent connection to the Internet. In 2000 a great number of business companies in the United States and Western Europe represented their services in the World Wide Web. At this time the meaning of the word ecommerce was changed. People began to define the term ecommerce as the process of purchasing of available goods and services over the Internet using secure connections and electronic payment services. Although the dot-com collapse in 2000 led to unfortunate results and many of ecommerce companies disappeared, the "brick and mortar" retailers recognized the advantages of electronic commerce and began to add such capabilities to their web sites (e.g., after the online grocery store Webvan came to ruin, two supermarket chains, Albertsons and Safeway, began to use ecommerce to enable their customers to buy groceries online). By the end of 2001, the largest form of ecommerce, Business-to-Business (B2B) model, had around $700 billion in transactions.

 

According to all available data, ecommerce sales continued to grow in the next few years and, by the end of 2007, ecommerce sales accounted for 3.4 percent of total sales.

Ecommerce has a great deal of advantages over "brick and mortar" stores and mail order catalogs. Consumers can easily search through a large database of products and services. They can see actual prices, build an order over several days and email it as a "wish list" hoping that someone will pay for their selected goods. Customers can compare prices with a click of the mouse and buy the selected product at best prices.

Online vendors, in their turn, also get distinct advantages. The web and its search engines provide a way to be found by customers without expensive advertising campaign. Even small online shops can reach global markets. Web technology also allows to track customer preferences and to deliver individually-tailored marketing.

History of ecommerce is unthinkable without Amazon and Ebay which were among the first Internet companies to allow electronic transactions. Thanks to their founders we now have a handsome ecommerce sector and enjoy the buying and selling advantages of the Internet. Currently there are 5 largest and most famous worldwide Internet retailers: Amazon, Dell, Staples, Office Depot and Hewlett Packard. According to statistics, the most popular categories of products sold in the World Wide Web are music, books, computers, office supplies and other consumer electronics.

Amazon.com, Inc. is one of the most famous ecommerce companies and is located in Seattle, Washington (USA). It was founded in 1994 by Jeff Bezos and was one of the first American ecommerce companies to sell products over the Internet. After the dot-com collapse Amazon lost its position as a successful business model, however, in 2003 the company made its first annual profit which was the first step to the further development.

At the outset Amazon.com was considered as an online bookstore, but in time it extended a variety of goods by adding electronics, software, DVDs, video games, music CDs, MP3s, apparel, footwear, health products, etc. The original name of the company was Cadabra.com, but shortly after it become popular in the Internet Bezos decided to rename his business "Amazon" after the world's most voluminous river. In 1999 Jeff Bezos was entitled as the Person of the Year by Time Magazine in recognition of the company's success. Although the company's main headquarters is located in the USA, WA, Amazon has set up separate websites in other economically developed countries such as the United Kingdom, Canada, France, Germany, Japan, and China. The company supports and operates retail web sites for many famous businesses, including Marks & Spencer, Lacoste, the NBA, Bebe Stores, Target, etc.

 

 

The importance of being informed

 

People can get along just fine without journalism. Read it because you like it, not because you feel you have to.

 

Young people consider news to be garbage and lies according to Paula Poindexter’s research at the University of Texas at Austin. Because of that and for so many other reasons, Poindexter says, millenials are increasingly ill-informed. In fact, according to her research, they simply don’t feel being informed is important to start with.

(Of course, it’s the grown-ups who get to decide what “being informed” means as well as brush aside any concerns that that information might indeed be garbage. Judges don’t usually get to craft their own legislation.)

Anyway, young people aren’t informed and Paula finds that scary. But is it really?

I enjoy my daily news fix because it gives me something to talk about, something to think about, something to laugh at and because it’s weirdly reassuring to know what’s going on in the world even if everything is going to hell.

Do I get any useful knowledge out of my news habit, though? Stuff that will help me in my day-to-day life, or anything that will make me a more informed voter? Oh, I guess once in a blue moon I do read a story like that. But mostly not.

We read because it gives us something to talk about and because we want to see what everyone else has to say about that nasty snow storm and because we love reading for its own sake and for so many other reasons.

Maybe we hope journalism makes us a better person. Martha Nussbaum has long argued that literature makes people wiser: more understanding of others’ failings and more open to new perspectives. Maybe journalism, some kinds of journalism, have that power too. (But then, so do travel, volunteering and having kids.)

Plenty of reasons to love journalism. But you don’t have to love it and if you don’t, I’m sure there are many other ways to get where you need to be going. Many other ways to be a good person.

Appreciate journalism for what it is. Don’t get upset at kids because they happen to have a different opinion about what’s important in life.