Compiled by Vicky Nolan
E-Commerce Affected by Credit Security
As Visa and MasterCard begin implementing new rules and transaction coding targeting Web purchases, many online gaming sites have been stymied in getting their customers' transactions processed. While it would be easy to believe that these efforts are directed primarily at squashing the Internet gaming biz, an article in Wired shows a similar story repeated on other e-commerce sites. These online merchants go so far as to suggest that they, instead of the customers, are the true victims of fraud. Wired quotes a survey from CyberSource that says nearly 83 percent of e-commerce operators polled foresee online fraud becoming a very serious problem. Operators are especially frustrated by credit card companies' chargeback policies that leave them vulnerable. One merchant closed up his online business because of "the uncertainty of never knowing" which sales would actually be paid for. "The situation right now is that the card companies have all but said that no matter what, if a cardholder calls and disputes a charge, the merchant will be hit with a chargeback," the merchant added.
Somebody's Shopping Online
With so many shopping sites on the Internet and plenty of opportunities for the event to happen, somebody besides the many nameless Internet users have to actually be doing the shopping. To learn more about who else is shopping online, ActivMedia Research studied the subject and reported their findings in "Real Numbers E-Commerce Study Series." According to their findings, 50 percent of all Internet businesses shop online for products and services. A breakdown of those figures shows that 54 percent of business-to-business firms are likely to migrate purchasing functions online, while Internet service and support businesses are likely to make the same move. In addition, 43 percent of business-to-consumer sites make online purchases.
Online Exports Set to Soar
According to a recently published report from Forrester Research, the Internet presents a wealth of opportunities to streamline international trade. As a result, global online exports will hit $1.4 trillion in 2004, with cross-border e-marketplace trade surpassing $400 billion. Unfortunately, these transactions won't be evenly spread out among nations, leading to a split among those nations that actively export and import using the Web and those that do not. "While B2B e-commerce is accelerating throughout the U.S., most business don't operate in domestic-only supply chains," a Forrester analyst explained. "Online trade will expand globally as firms use the Net to attack inefficiencies in today's international trade practices." Western Europe is expected to lead various regions in the world with $692 billion in global online exports in 2004, led by German's $144 billion in cross-border sales. During that time, North America will probably see more than 23 percent of its exports move online. Of that, the U.S. will account for $210 billion in cross-border sales. Asia-Pacific, meantime, will reach $219 billion, led by Japan's $57 billion in online exports.
AOL Losing Top Dog Status for IM Services
CNET recently reported that AIM (America Online's Instant Message) is facing serious challenge from competing services offered by Yahoo! and MSN. A report from Media Metrix reports that the two services have garnered together nearly as many users as AIM, and are attaining new users more quickly than any other instant messaging service. With Media Metrix reporting that Yahoo Messenger had 10.6 million American users by August 2000, followed by MSN Messenger Service signing on 10.3 million users, analysts were intrigued that one third of AIM's 21.5 million users actively use a second service. Many experts predict that companies that offer instant messaging services are likely to dominate the Internet, as IM has taken vast leaps in popularity among Internet users.
Windows 2000 Gains Users
Since the debut of Microsoft's Windows 2000 operating system in February, its total Web usage has grown form 0.10 percent on February 15 to 3.73 percent on November 8, 2000. This growth has been at the expense of Microsoft's other operating systems, reports WebSideStory, such as Windows NT, which has dropped from 7.25 percent to 5.99 percent during that same time. Further, the combined usage share of Microsoft's two consumer operating systems, Windows 98 and Windows 95, has dropped from 85.5 percent to 82.79 percent during the same time.
Bonanza of Tech-Gadget Gifts Predicted
A poll from Texas Instruments predicts that 40 million people will purchase some kind of personal technology item as a holiday gift this year. On average, these shoppers will probably drop about $250 each for items like cellular phones, digital cameras, Internet audio players and personal digital assistants (PDAs). A Texas Instrument executive explained, "The combination of convenience and increased functionality has transformed these gadgets from 'luxury' or 'techie' items to must-haves for today's busy consumers."