Page 417 - Introduction to Electronic Commerce and Social Commerce

12.8 The Future of E-Commerce 405

Some believe that such a combination saves retailers from Future Trends That Are Limiting
extinction (e.g., see Douglas 2014). the Spread of EC

The following trends may slow down the growth of EC and
M-Commerce Web 2.0, and may even cripple the Internet:

There is almost a consensus that the role of m-commerce in
e-commerce will increase significantly. There already are • Security concerns. Both shoppers and users of
e-banking and other services worry about online
millions of innovative mobile apps and their numbers are
growing rapidly. The area where we will see the fastest security. The Web needs to be made safer.
• Lack of net neutrality. If the big telecom compa-
growth in EC is the proliferation of apps. Many m-com-
merce start-ups are entering the field. For details, see Kemp nies are allowed to charge more for faster access,
small companies that cannot pay extra may be at a
(2016).
disadvantage.
• Copyright violations. The legal problems of YouTube,
Social Commerce Wikipedia, and others may result in a loss of vital out-
lets of public opinion and creativity.
• Lack of standards. There is still a lack of standards
Recently, the use of mobile social networks has been accelerat-
for EC, especially for global trade.
ing. The increasing number of new wireless Web 2.0 services
have assisted many social networks to go wireless, enabling
more interactions between people. Nielsen’s September 2012
release of its Social Media Report indicated that 4 out of 5 In conclusion, many people believe that the impact of EC on
active Internet users visit social networks and blogs. The report our lives will be as much as, and possibly more profound than,
also shows that nearly 82% of social media users access these that of the Industrial Revolution. No other phenomenon since
websites using their mobile phones (Nielsen 2012). These the Industrial Revolution has been classified in this category. It
numbers continue to grow with time. is our hope that this book will help you move successfully into
Social commerce is growing rapidly on Facebook, this exciting and challenging area of the digital revolution.
Twitter, Google, and many other companies. Mobile adver- For a 537 slide show, see “Digital in 2016” at slideshare.
tising and promotions are major areas of growth. For details, net/wearesocialsg/digital-in-2016 by Kemp (2016).
see Turban et al. (2016) and Kemp (2016).

Enjoy Some Interesting Videos
Future Technological Trends that May About the Future of E-Commerce
Accelerate the Speed of E-Commerce
The following are some suggested videos about e-commerce:
The following are a few examples that will facilitate the use of
e-commerce (based on Scollay (2015) and McCafferty (2016a): 1. “E-Commerce’s Future Ain’t What It Used to Be; It’s
Even Better” (7:48 min) at youtube.com/watch?v=mJtw
• Much wider broadband of technologies and faster net works 1027FYs
• More powerful search engines (intelligent agent-based) 2. “Future of E-Commerce: Trends, Challenges, and Oppor-
• Better batteries for mobile devices tunities for Telecom and the Mobile Industry” (7:41 min)
• Development in quantum computing and the semantic Web at youtube.com/watch?v=wCZXif3MUEw
• The arrival of flexible computer screens
• Better cloud applications
• Wide use of smartphones and tablets SECTION 12.8 REVIEW QUESTIONS
• Increased use of wearable devices
• Possibility of free Internet access 1. How is EC related to traditional commerce?
• Using augmented reality (e.g., in order fulfillment, see 2. Describe the role of mobility in the future of EC.
DHL 2015) 3. How will social networks facilitate EC?
• Going further into IoT 4. Which future trends will help EC?
• Next generation data centers 5. Which trends slow down the growth of EC?