E-commerce stands for 'electronic commerce' quite literally.
It consists of buying and selling of products or services over electronic systems, and most commonly this means across the internet.
The amount of electronic trade today is huge.
Most e-commerce still involves the transportation of physical items in some way, as the most common form of online selling is still retail.
E-commerce conducted between business is referred to as B2B, whereas when it is between a business and consumers it is referred to as B2C.
Probably one of the most well known e-retail sites is Amazon.com where there is no intermediary - you buy direct.
Probably one of the most well known sites that has an intermediary is ebay.com
Some of the most common business applications for e-commerce are:
* Email
* Instant messaging
* Newsgroups
* Online shopping and order tracking
* Online banking
* Online office suites
* Domestic and international payment systems
* Shopping cart software
* Teleconferencing
* Electronic ticketing
Any business that is considering moving into e-commerce for the first time is wise to consult their business plan and update it with an e-commerce plan.
Further reading
Business Town
Glow - glossary of technical terms
