E-commerce - the buying and selling of goods and services over the internet.
E-bsuiness - the conducting of business on the internet, not only buying and selling, but also serving customers and collaborating with business partners.
Industries Using E business
E-business Models
E-business Model- is an approach to conducting electronic business on the internet.
Business-to-business (B2B)
Electronic marketplaces or e-marketplaces- interactive business communities providing a central market space where multiple buyers and sellers can engage in business activities.
Business-to-consumer (B2C)
Applies to any business that sells its products or services to consumers over the internet.
E-shop - a version of a retail store where customers can shop at any hour of the day without leaving their home or office.
E-mall- consists of a number of e-shops, it serves as a gateway through which a visitor can access other e-shops.
Types of Businesses
Brick-and-mortar business- a business that operates in a physical store without an internet presence.
Pure-play (virtual) business- a business that operates on the internet only without a physical store. Examples include Amazon.com and Expedia.com
Click-and-mortar business- a business that operates in a physical store and on the internet. Examples include REI and Barnes and Noble.
Consumer-to-business (C2B)
Applies to any consumer that sells a product or service to a business over the internet.
An example - Priceline.com where bidders (or customers) ser their prices for items such as airline tickets or hotel rooms, and a seller decides whether to supply them.
Consumer-to-consumer (C2C)
Online auctions:
Electronic auction (e-auction)- sellers and buyers solicit consecutive bids from each other and prices are determined dynamically.
Forward auction- an auction that sellers use as a selling channel to many buyers and the highest bid wins.
Reverse auction- an auction that buyers use to purchase a product or service, selecting the seller with the lowest bid.
C2C Communities:
Communities of interest- people interact with each other on specific topics, such as golfing and stamp collecting.
Communities of relations- people come together to share certain life experience, such as cancer patients, senior citizens, and car enthusiasts.
Communities of fantasy- people participate in imaginary environments, such as fantasy football teams and playing one-to-one with Michael Jordan.
E-business Benefits and challenges
E-business Business:
- highly accessible
- decreased cost
- increase convenience
- increase global reach
Challenges :
- protecting consumers
- leveraging existing systems
- increasing liability
- providing security
- adhering to taxation rules.
