Page 5 - Introduction to Electronic Commerce and Social Commerce

Preface

The global economic crisis of 2009–2014 forced organizations to reduce expenses in an envi-
ronment of reduced economic activities. One of the most popular cost-reduction activities is
conducting more business online. Actually, we are experiencing one of the most important
changes to our daily lives—the move to an Internet-based society. Internet World Stats (inter-
networldstats.com) reported in 2014 that more than 83% of the North American population
surf the Internet (Fall 2015). The large number of people on the Internet is one of the major
drivers of conducting business online, which is known as electronic commerce, or in its broader
scope as e-business.
Electronic commerce (EC) describes the manner in which transactions take place over
networks, mostly the Internet. It is the process of electronically buying and selling goods,
services, and information. Certain EC applications—such as buying and selling stocks and
airline tickets on the Internet—are growing very rapidly, exceeding non-Internet trades. But
EC is not just about buying and selling; it is also about electronically communicating, col-
laborating, and discovering information. It is about e-learning, e-government, e-health, social
networks, and much more. Electronic commerce has an impact on a significant portion of the
world, including developing countries, affecting businesses, professions, and most impor-
tantly people.

WHAT’S NEW IN THIS EDITION?

The following are the major changes in this edition as compared to the third one (by Pearson).

• Major Updating. While we did not change the number and names of most of the chapters,
we performed a major revision in the content of all chapters.
• New Coverage (social media and commerce). This book covers significant amount of
social media and social commerce. The topics are covered in all chapters, including the new
chapters (7 and 8).
• New Chapters. We transferred some of the content of old Chapter 7 (Web 2.0) to Chapter 2
and instead created a new chapter on social commerce marketing. Chapter 8 deals with
enterprise- based social media and commerce.
• New Author. We welcome Jon Outland who contributed his expertise on social commerce,
marketing, and e-marketing to this edition. Jon did the supplemental material for the previ-
ous editions.
• New Tutorial. A new tutorial (Tutorial B) describes the major EC support technologies
including cloud computing, RFID, and EDI.
• Book Learning Outcomes. Ten learning outcomes have been added to this preface to help
faculty to design the course and students to understand the content.
• Video Exercises. Video exercises have been added to most chapters. These exercises
require the students to view the videos and answer related questions.

v