E-commerce is like a niche for a business. E-commerce Types of e-commerce

The scale of the spread of e-commerce is difficult to assess. There are two commonly used metrics commonly used to measure e-commerce penetration: the number of Internet hosts and the reliable servers.

An Internet host is any computer system whose protocol address is connected to the Internet. The database does not provide a complete report on users because the studies do not cover all computer systems connected to the Internet, and do not take into account, for example, computers that are protected from unauthorized access and thus provide only an indicator of the minimum size of the Internet system.

Reliable servers allow users to provide personal information (such as credit card information), which is driving the growth of e-commerce. The account of reliable servers thus provides a reasonable scale for the diffusion of e-commerce activities across countries.

Other indicators of Internet usage - the number of Internet users, the number of sites on the network and the number of new domain registrations - also confirm rapid growth. Websites are an important metric in evaluating e-commerce, primarily because they can be seen as a means of accessing Internet content and services.

V last years in the electronic economy, a concept has appeared that can be translated as digital division or digital inequality. This concept characterizes the difference that exists between individuals, businesses, households, countries and geographic regions at the socio-economic level in their ability to access information and communication technologies and the widespread use of the Internet in various activities.

Currently, there are a number of indicators for assessing the digital divide:

1) at the state level, in addition to communication infrastructures, an important indicator is the ability to use a computer and the potential, for example, of alternative access to the Internet via television and mobile phones;

2) the digital inequality at the level of individual households depends mainly on the level of income and education. But other aspects that assess an individual household, such as size and type of household, age, sex, race, location, language skills, play a large role;

3) the rapid growth in the number of people who use the Internet and commercial applications to it is stimulated technological innovation and their combinations. Together with the economic and regulatory advances seen in the telecommunications sector, these technological advances reduce costs and improve the quality of Internet access;

4) increased productivity in the production of computers - the main device currently used to access the Internet - leads to a sharp drop in the price of computers;

5) cheaper computers have driven the growth of the individual home user market. But there is no apparent correlation between the rise in home computer use and the rise in Internet use by home users;

6) at the international level, the most important indicator of the state of universal services in telecommunications and the basic measure of the international digital divide is the number of access to mobile telecommunications per 100 inhabitants.

Commercial activity in the market space is determined by four factors:

1) the infrastructure of interaction, which affects the form of economic activity (commerce requires interaction between buyers and sellers to exchange information about the characteristics of goods and services, quality, availability, prices, etc.; enterprises must coordinate their actions with partners);

2) market space (commercial interaction does not take place in a vacuum, but in a certain coordinated environment, within which buyers and sellers interact with each other, negotiate and conclude agreements in certain terms), the mechanisms of which (characteristics of goods, processes of meeting demand and supply ) depend on the interaction infrastructure;

3) transactional mechanisms, which also depend on the means of communication used (how to conclude and execute a transaction, send an order, make a payment, transfer information about the state of account balances, etc.);

4) the methods of delivery of the goods, which are determined by the subject of the goods and the means of interaction.

Different levels of involvement of electronic technologies in business processes make it possible to distinguish four categories of commerce:

1) pure traditional commerce that does not use electronic technology;

2) e-commerce of the first level, where electronic interaction technologies are used to carry out traditional commercial activities, which in fact does not make fundamental changes, but makes the processes faster, cheaper and more efficient;

3) combined e-commerce (e-commerce of the second level), which implies the creation of an electronic market space in which needs and offers are satisfied, although the goods or services that can be purchased are delivered to the buyer in a traditional way, physically;

4) pure e-commerce (e-commerce of the third level), which assumes the availability of goods and services in electronic form and the implementation of their delivery in electronic form in the electronic marketplace.

Understanding the degree of involvement of Internet technologies in business processes and infrastructure of the market space gives an idea of ​​large variations in the implementation of a commercial transaction and that the network itself becomes a market space.

Assessing the impact of e-commerce on business reengineering processes in terms of creating added value as a criterion for the effectiveness of business processes, it is necessary to highlight the main positive directions:

Electronic commerce strengthens direct marketing;

E-commerce is transforming organizational structures enterprises;

E-commerce encourages the creation of new ones.

Traditional direct sales, represented on the market by catalog sales, and in - additional view sales in the form of telephone sales. E-commerce tools expand direct selling opportunities through real-time transactions.

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We are sure that all users reading this article are aware of how important the Internet is in their lives. The global network has opened for people not only a number of cognitive opportunities, but also brought communication between users to a completely new level! Therefore, it was not news to anyone that the Internet began to be used for online business.

Currently, almost every serious and diligent person is able to make money using the World Wide Web. "How?" - some will be surprised. The answer is simple - via e-commerce!

The concept of e-commerce and its main components

Electronic commerce- the concept is very broad and includes many categories, which we will definitely discuss later. If we give the most generalized interpretation of this term, we can say that this is a system of economic relations that are carried out using the Internet. In a narrow sense, e-commerce is online entrepreneurship.

E-commerce includes the following global categories:

• online trading
• electronic data exchange (because in the modern world one of the most valuable resources is information)
• electronic banking and insurance services
• money transfers and electronic money
• email marketing (systems for collecting user data, electronic catalogs, directories, message boards)

Today, almost every physically existing commercial organization(even the smallest one) has its own website at its disposal.

It can be a regular information site with basic information about the organization, services, answers to frequently asked questions, contact information. Or it could be.

It all depends on the specifics of the organization's work, its scale and goals. Also, this direction is an excellent chance for individual entrepreneurs who have decided to try themselves as network businessmen.

In the modern world, more and more processes are becoming automated, so it is obvious that this area of ​​Internet business will continue to develop successfully. Let's talk more about the advantages and disadvantages of online commerce.

Advantages

1) Its main advantage is its ability to reach the global market without necessarily implying large financial investments and costs. The restrictions on this type of trade are not geographically defined. This allows consumers to make global choices, get the information they need and compare offers from all potential suppliers, regardless of their location.

2) Thanks to direct communication with the end consumer, online entrepreneurship shortens the chain of intermediaries, sometimes even completely eliminating them. In this way, a direct channel is created between the manufacturer or service provider and the end user, which allows them to offer products and services tailored to the individual preferences of the target market.

3) E-commerce allows suppliers to be closer to their customers, resulting in increased productivity and competitiveness for companies. The result is an improved customer experience, which leads to greater intimacy, as well as more effective pre- and post-sales support. With these new forms of e-commerce, consumers now have virtual stores that are open 24 hours a day.

4) Reducing costs is another very important benefit usually associated with e-commerce. The simpler and more convenient a specific business process is, the more likely it is to succeed. This translates into a significant reduction in transaction costs and, of course, in the prices charged to customers.

disadvantages

The main disadvantages associated with e-commerce are as follows:

1) Strong dependence on information and communication technologies. This issue is especially relevant for the Russian market. Not all remote regions have high-speed Internet that would contribute to the development of Internet commerce;

2) Lack of legislation that adequately regulates new e-commerce activities both nationally and internationally. This also includes a high percentage of e-commerce fraud and a lack of effective methods fight it.

3) Not all consumers are addicted to e-commerce. For many customers, the ability to “touch” and visually evaluate a product is a key factor when purchasing certain products. The inability to fully assess the quality of the purchased item is the main factor holding back the development of e-commerce.

4) Loss of loss of privacy by users and insecurity when conducting online transactions. With the development of safety technologies, the risk of this factor is significantly reduced. However, losing your money when paying online is much easier than losing it by handing it over to a seller in a store.

5) The threat of problems with the delivery of goods, registration of returns, etc.

E-commerce in numbers

The beginnings of e-commerce began smoothly in 1998. Today, almost 20 years later, the total turnover of e-commerce is $ 2.36 trillion. The first place in terms of online sales among all countries is undoubtedly China. Russia is only in 9th place, which means that there are prospects for development in this area.

E-commerce is conventionally divided into more than 14 types. Let's single out some of the most common and interesting ones and tell you more about them.

1. B2B - in the transcript, the abbreviation means "business to business"
2. B2C - "business to consumer"
3. C2C - "relationship between consumers"
4. C2B - "relationship between consumers and trade organizations"
5. B2A - "business administration"
6. C2A - "consumer administration"

Business to Business (B2B)

In this type of e-commerce, both participants are business enterprises. As a result, the scale and value of B2B ecommerce can be enormous. As an example of such a model, the following situation can be described: a smartphone manufacturer is looking for wholesalers to sell its goods.

Thus, in this scheme, goods are sold for their further resale to end consumers. The main goal of the B2B system is to improve the efficiency of online cooperation between companies.

Any business model has its own platforms through which trade relations are implemented. For the B2B scheme, such sites are exchanges, auctions and catalogs.

With the help of the catalog, you can get as much information as possible about the characteristics and properties of the purchased product. Also, buyers can compare products by price, delivery time and terms, reviews, etc.

Such information transparency can greatly facilitate the choice of the client. Most often, catalogs are created in areas where low-cost goods are sold, for which demand can be predicted, and the price of which hardly changes.

Auctions are usually held for unique items. For example, they can be rare items, specialized technical equipment, etc. Pricing here is never fixed and takes place right at the time of the auction.

The seller lists all of his lots, and numerous buyers offer an ever-increasing price if they are interested in the product. The auction for the lot ends after a predetermined time has elapsed, after which the goods are given to the client who offered the highest price.

On exchanges, prices are formed in accordance with supply and demand, and therefore they very rarely turn out to be stable. The exchange is perfect for selling popular, common and simple products with easily standardized characteristics. The exchange is also suitable for industries in which price and demand fluctuate frequently. Exchanges often provide an opportunity to trade anonymously.

Business to Consumer (B2C)

When we hear the term e-commerce, most people think of the B2C model. We can say that this scheme is a logical continuation of the B2B system, because it is the B2C type that ensures the delivery of goods to the end consumer.

Thus, the "business-to-consumer" type corresponds to our understanding of traditional retail. The only difference is that in this case the trade is carried out via the Internet.

This type of relationship is most widespread in the online commerce industry. There are already many virtual stores on the Internet that sell all kinds of consumer goods such as electronic appliances, software, books, shoes, cars, food, entertainment products, services, and more.

The business-to-consumer scheme provides many benefits to both the buyer and the seller:

For the seller, this scheme is beneficial mainly because there is no need to hire a lot of paid staff, as is the case in conventional stores. The buyer no longer needs to spend time visiting the store: any product can be bought on the Internet, having studied the characteristics and reviews.

Another well-known fact is that any item can be purchased via the Internet cheaper than in a regular store. For household appliances, the price difference can be several thousand.

Examples of the largest online stores operating on the "business-to-consumer" system are: Amazon, ozon, Aliexpress, etc.

Another offshoot of e-commerce has emerged from the B2B scheme. Since 2010, the sale of goods through social media has been actively developing. networks, therefore this type of trade is called "social commerce".

B2B type is implemented with the following trading platforms:

• online shopping
• Web- showcases
• social networks

Consumer e-commerce (C2C)

This area affects trade relations between people who do not conduct business. Drawing an analogy with ordinary life, we can say that this is something like an advertisement in a newspaper for the sale of a particular product.

In Russia, well-known bulletin boards act as trading platforms for the C2C format: Avito, Yula, etc. Also, the C2C format began to spread widely on social networks. Special groups are created in which users post advertisements for the sale of things from any category.

Let's consider a few more existing schemes. Immediately, we note that they are much less popular and it is very difficult for an ordinary user to make money on them. The following diagrams are presented mainly to broaden the general horizons.

Consumer Business (C2B)

This type of e-commerce is very common in projects based on crowdsourcing... A large number of people make their services or products available for purchase among companies looking for these particular types of services or products.

Examples of this practice are sites where designers submit several options for a company logo, and one of them is selected and purchased.

Other platforms that are very common in this type of commerce are marketplaces that sell photographs, images, media, and design elements.

Business Administration (B2A)

This part of e-commerce covers all online transactions between companies and government. This area is typical for areas such as fiscal, social security, employment, legal documents and registers, etc.

Consumer Administration (C2A)

The consumer-administration model encompasses all electronic transactions between individuals and the government.

This scheme can be applied in the following areas:

• Education- dissemination of information, distance learning, etc.
• Social Security- through the dissemination of information, making payments, etc.
• Tax- filing tax returns, payments, etc.
• Health care- making an appointment, online consultations, payment for medical services

Both models related to public administration (B2A and C2A) are closely related to the idea of ​​efficiency and usability of services provided to citizens by the government, supported by information and communication technologies.

Main conclusions

Based on the information presented in the article, we will highlight several key points that characterize the main provisions of e-commerce.

- to carry out business transactions, there must be at least two participants. One of them will always act as the seller and the other as the buyer.

- B2B system (business - business) - personifies the wholesale trade, and goods are sold here to legal entities. B2C type (business-to-consumer) represents retail and brings the product to individuals (end consumers)

- Any user without special information and computer training will be able to earn with the help of B2C (business-consumer) and C2C (consumer-consumer) schemes.

- The B2C commerce type is the most common e-commerce implementation. Each user will be able to earn in this way by creating his own online store. You can read more about creating your own online store without attachments in this... We also wrote an article about - this is a great example that personifies income generation through the C2C system.

- In total, there are many schemes online business... This list can be expanded to 30-40 schemes, depending on the subjects of economic relations. For example, if we believe that the government is a separate entity, then we can come up with many more types of online trading: B2G (business to government), G2B (government for business), G2E (government for employees), G2G (government to government), G2C (government to citizen), C2G (citizen to government). We remind you that all the main and generally recognized types have been discussed in this article.

Conclusion

Summing up all of the above, we can only say one thing: “ continues to develop successfully, penetrating into narrower specialized areas of trade. The future belongs to the Internet and technology. Perhaps, in a few decades, users will completely lose the need for traditional retail stores. Until that happens, you just need to know that e-commerce is a great chance to make money and create own business with minimal investment.

1. making transfers and payments for services;
2. settlements with online stores;
3. conducting payments in the field of the entertainment industry on the Internet.

For a long time, the market for transfers and payments for services developed mainly due to terminal networks, however, the entry into force of the first laws that began to regulate this market made it possible to make significant adjustments to the course of its development.

In general, there is no company that would be a leader in all segments of e-commerce. This type of business is in an extensive phase. There is still no fierce competition between the participants and everyone is expanding their activities due to technologies that provide more income. However, in two or three years, the client base will be fully covered, and now competition and absorption of companies by more profitable and using more modern technologies will begin.

Means of payment in e-commerce

Means of payment in e-commerce can be both electronic means payment or electronic money. At the same time, in accordance with the Law on NPS, they may or may not have a physical medium, they can be both personalized and impersonal means of payment. In addition, a fairly large number of "hybrid" payment instruments are presented, which are successfully used both to pay for online purchases in online stores and for offline purchases.

Virtual cards

Virtual card- a special bank payment card designed for payments on the Internet. It represents the data of the bank card details necessary for making payments on the Internet sites.

The details of virtual cards are usually the following:

• card number (PAN);
• expiration date of the card: month and year;
• security code CVV2 / CVC2 - a three-digit digital code that is printed on the back of the card for ordinary plastic bank cards;
• cardholder name - may not be available for virtual cards.

Virtual maps are by definition a niche, online tool. Among their main advantages, we note the ability to make purchases, including in foreign online stores. Finally, virtual "plastic" is an indispensable solution for those who do not have a bank account or physical card.

It's no secret that outside of large cities, acquiring cards is practically absent in ordinary stores. But this does not mean at all that there is no demand among residents of remote regions for remote purchases (whether physical goods or virtual ones). If the issuing bank wants to show its customers (present or future) the advantages of remote settlements using its services, while not investing in additional offices, the implementation of virtual cards seems to be one of the most interesting options.

The advantages of virtual cards are as follows:

1. Versatility... Bank payment cards, including virtual ones, are a universal method of paying for purchases in online stores around the world. This is how they differ from non-bank payment systems (electronic money). To use such systems, you must somehow transfer money there. For popular foreign systems, such as PayPal, this problem is solved with the help of bank, including virtual, cards.
2. Convenience of receiving... The issuance of a virtual card can be carried out without a personal visit of the client to the bank - via the Internet, ATM network or mobile communications. In the absence of physical media, the client can receive the details of the virtual card almost without delay, right at the time of the request.
3. Security... The use of virtual cards allows you to avoid the risk associated with the transfer of bank card details over the Internet. The client can order the issue of a virtual card with the minimum required balance, sufficient for a single payment. With such a card, it will not be possible to steal any significant amount of money.
4. Anonymity... The virtual card can be debit or prepaid. Prepaid cards differ in that they do not require the conclusion of a bank account (deposit) agreement, therefore the name of the holder of a prepaid (including virtual) card is not a required requisite. However, anonymous payments in Russia are allowed only up to 15 thousand rubles.
5. Expanding the availability of e-commerce... According to the StatBanker.ru agency, the bank card market in Russia is still extremely undeveloped, and the overwhelming majority (88.8%) of transactions are carried out with the aim of withdrawing cash.

There are two obvious disadvantages of virtual cards:

1. inability to use in regular stores and ATMs;
2. restrictions imposed by issuing banks: payment limits, limited validity period.

Table 1 shows the comparative properties of some virtual cards available to the Russian consumer.

Table 1

Types and characteristics of card products of a number of Russian banks

Virtual "plastic" is not the most New Product in the payment market. But only in the last few years, the interest of clients in it has increased dramatically. Strictly speaking, virtual cards are rather a specific form of classic "plastic". The absolute virtuality of all operations - from buying a card to receiving its details on a mobile phone and further payments with it on the Internet - is almost the ideal of modern electronic payments - instant, remote, secure and ubiquitous.

A virtual card, as a rule, is issued without a physical medium, only in electronic form. However, the issuing bank can produce plastic cards for customers with the details of virtual cards printed on them. These cards lack some of the attributes of ordinary bank cards: magnetic stripe or chip, hologram, holder's signature. This prevents virtual cards from being used to pay for purchases at regular stores or to withdraw cash from an ATM.

Electronic money and e-wallets

According to the NPS Law, virtual prepaid cards described above and prepaid cards with physical media (both EMV and magnetic stripe cards) and scratch cards are classified as electronic means of payment (EMP). According to the Law, an ESP is a means and (or) a method that allows a client of a money transfer operator to draw up, certify and transmit orders in order to transfer funds within the framework of the applicable forms cashless payments using information and communication technologies, electronic media, including payment cards, as well as other technical devices... From the client's point of view, an electronic means of payment is how you can access your electronic wallet, account balance information, pay for goods and services.

From the point of view of accounting and processing of ESP transactions, accounting for ESPs themselves, the processing of such ESPs is similar in many respects to card processing. In fact, ESP as one of the methods of payment for goods and services in e-commerce has in this area of ​​non-cash payments, sometimes no less, and sometimes much more, both in Russia and abroad, than card payments. The reason for this is the low cost of service compared to traditional banking services and card payments.

Bank cards linked to e-wallets

From a formal point of view, plastic cards are not always associated with opening a bank account. Russian legislation allows customers of credit institutions to provide funds for settlements using credit cards without opening a bank account.

Recently, there has been a tendency to expand the use of plastic cards both for "classic" replenishment of the balance of an electronic wallet, and for expanding the functionality of the latter. In particular, the ability to link a bank card to an electronic money account is implemented - in this case, the wallet becomes an intermediate transit link between customers and the store. Such a solution, which does not imply separate actions for replenishing an account in the ESP (ED) system, allows the client to safely make purchases on the Internet without specifying the details of his card. Linking a card and a wallet allows you not to transmit confidential information over the network, while no additional information is required from the client himself.

In addition to semi-automatic replenishment of e-wallets, it becomes possible to withdraw funds, which is especially important for those who use e-money systems to make transfers. In other words, bank accounts, which are legally and conceptually separated from electronic money accounts, have ceased to exist in isolation. "Binding" creates an impersonal connection between them - transparent and intuitive for the client. In the past few years, it has been repeatedly emphasized that cooperation between banks and electronic money systems is mutually beneficial and promising. The possibilities of linking "plastic" to the wallet prove that the clients of these organizations are not mutually exclusive audiences. On the contrary, a synergistic effect is evident: practical examples show that active bank clients "grow" from users of electronic money.

Finally, given example hybridization allows solving purely applied problems at the complex level. If there is a corresponding agreement with the issuing bank, the electronic money system can identify the client who "linked" his bank card.

Wallets linked to bank cards

The convergence of card products and electronic money is, to a certain extent, reciprocal. Thus, electronic money can be used to purchase virtual cards (for example, VISA Virtuon, MasterCard Virtual), providing additional options for withdrawing funds from the ED system.

The second example of hybridization is a kind of mirror image of the first. Recently, plastic cards have appeared on the market, to which electronic wallets are actually tied. The client can pay with a bank card both in physical stores and remotely. In this case, the amount of purchases will be debited from the account in electronic money.

The advantages of this tool are largely the same as those described in the previous example. However, the main advantage of wallet-based cards is that the consumer gets ample opportunities to use electronic money offline. The combination of two, in essence, familiar tools gives the client freedom of choice. In fact, the list of available trade and service enterprises is expanding, while the degree of maximum control of available funds does not decrease. In addition to this, unlike classic bank cards, there are very wide opportunities for replenishing the balance - from using a mobile phone account to making a money transfer.

Projects of this type are another example of successful cooperation between the issuing bank and the electronic money operator. The client uses "plastic" intensively, gets used to it and, probably, in the future will issue a classic card (apparently, in a "familiar" bank).

Accepting payments on the Internet

Among the most common methods of payment for goods and services on the Internet at the moment, one can single out settlements using payment cards, payments through network payment systems (e-wallets, electronic money), payments from a mobile phone account via SMS and settlements using self-service terminals. On the websites of online stores, as a rule, several payment options are presented so that the buyer can choose the most acceptable and convenient for himself. Let's analyze two of them that are somehow related to card technologies.

Internet acquiring of payment cards

All economic entities are interested in the development of the card industry. For the state, it allows to ensure an increase in the transparency of financial transactions and an increase in tax revenues, and also significantly reduces the costs associated with servicing cash turnover. In addition, the activation of settlements with bank cards leads to an increase in the volume of funds attracted to the banking sector and the lending capacity of banks. For consumers, a payment card is another payment instrument, acquiring new functions every year.

The acquiring procedure is the activity of a credit institution, which includes settlements with trade and service enterprises (TSP) for transactions made using bank cards. This definition can be fully applied to the acquiring of payment cards in chain stores. As participants in a payment transaction on the Internet, one can single out the client himself, an online store (or another site that accepts payment cards or electronic means of payment), a bank that issued a payment card, an acquiring bank, a settlement bank and a processing center.

As an additional participant in the settlement transaction, an intermediary (service provider) can be distinguished, whose main tasks include:

• provision of a virtual terminal (merchant plug-in) - a program for authorizing payments via the Internet in real time, which is installed on the computer of a regular or online store and allows customers to make payments by phone, fax or e-mail;
• fraud monitoring - a set of fraud prevention methods, including payment card holder authentication (Verified by VISA and MasterCard Secure Code);
• generating an authorization request or transferring a financial transaction file to an acquirer for further settlements;
• formation of chargeback payments (reversal, charge back);
• providing fraud detection and protection tools.

The scheme of interaction of subjects in the course of Internet acquiring of payment cards is shown in Fig. 1.

Interaction of participants when paying on the site with a payment card

Thus, in the process of carrying out one operation, quite a lot of participants are involved, which does not affect the speed of transactions (as a rule, it is only a few seconds). For the user, the conduct of transactions seems to be even simpler, since he is not affected by settlements between the participants in the system. The buyer visits a website on the Internet, selects a product or service that he wants to pay for; selects a card payment method; enters the data of the plastic card: name (in Latin transcription), card number (PAN) and a confirmation code on the back of the card (CVV2 / CVC2); confirms the payment with the payment button (the card is debited online), which completes the purchase.

Internet acquiring services are currently provided by many credit institutions in Russia. When choosing a bank - an acquiring partner, a chain store should take into account not only the size of the commission, which can be expressed as a percentage of the transaction amount and (or) in a fixed amount for each successful payment, but also such factors as:

• connection fee (some acquiring banks do not apply this commission to stimulate the promotion of Internet acquiring services);
• the need to deposit a certain amount of money to ensure settlements (depositing the amount on the seller's account to ensure the fulfillment of all obligations);
• the presence of restrictions on the size of a single transaction and the number of transactions per day;
• a list of payment cards serviced by an acquirer (most credit organizations accept payments by VISA and MasterCard bank cards, as additional cards can be serviced by American Express, Diners Club and some others);
• list of countries where Internet acquiring operations are possible.

Formally, Internet acquiring services are paid for by sellers, i.e. owners of electronic resources, however, the latter have the opportunity to shift this commission to the buyer, including it in the cost of the product or service.

The use of bank plastic cards to pay for purchases on the Internet is quite popular, but it has one significant drawback - it is the low security of payments for the client. The cardholder who provided his data for payment on the Internet runs the risk of losing money if the key characteristics of the card become known to fraudsters. To reduce the likelihood of losing money, a classic bank card can be replaced with a virtual one.

Bank plastic cards and virtual cards are recognized as one of the most popular payment instruments in e-commerce, allowing you to pay for purchases remotely and almost instantly. Payment systems of bank cards are constantly working to increase the level of security of payments through cards, including on the Internet, which also contributes to their popularization among customers.

Acceptance of electronic money

The procedure for making payment via EPS is slightly different from payment by credit card. The client also selects a product or service on the seller's website, finds payment by electronic money among the payment methods, and then goes to the payment system's website (of course, an account with EPS must first be opened and a sufficient amount to pay for the purchase must be deposited into it). As a rule, the settings of the payment operation allow you to go to the page where you need to enter a login and password in the payment system, then write out the transfer amount (or it will be reflected automatically) and the purpose of the payment. The seller's account number in the EPS will already be entered in the corresponding line. Upon completion of the payment, the client is redirected to the store's website, where the status of the payment and further instructions are displayed. A simplified diagram of the interaction of subjects when paying with electronic money may look as shown in Fig. 2.

Interaction of subjects when calculating with electronic money

You can pay for goods and services not only directly on the seller's website, but also from the website of the payment system. To do this, on the EPS page, you must select the payment function, and then find the seller of goods and services in the list. Such a scheme is preferable for payments in favor of well-known merchants, for example, when paying for mobile communications or bank loans.

When accepting payment through the site with electronic money, the seller, as in the case of a regular sale, must document the operation of the transaction. At the same time, the use of electronic documents certified by a digital signature is allowed, however, it is recommended to periodically request paper copies in case of claims from the tax authorities.

Electronic money has made a real breakthrough in the field of e-commerce by its appearance, providing buyers and sellers with a convenient and inexpensive means of payment. Currently, no online store can do without using electronic currency as a means of payment. At the same time, the set of payment systems depends both on the specification of goods and services, and on the level of popularity of electronic means of payment in the network environment.

Mobile commerce

Mobile communications can be used in various ways to carry out financial and trade transactions.

First, a mobile phone can be used as a bank card. A bank card is, in fact, a customer-owned storage device that performs two functions: identifying the user and identifying the account where the user's funds are located. The mobile phone is used for the reliable storage of this information, thus avoiding the high costs of providing all the bank's clients with cards. In fact, the subscriber identification module - a SIM card - in mobile phones is a smart card, albeit in an unusual form. The bank customer identification number and account number can be recorded on the SIM card or in the phone memory, acting as a virtual card.

Secondly, devices based on mobile devices can perform the functions of a terminal in a merchant, as well as be used to send requests for payments and establish communication with the appropriate bank to obtain permission to perform settlement transactions.

Third, a mobile phone can function as elements of an ATM. If you use the funds, access to which is provided by the mobile phone, for payment in the store, then he and cash machine stores function as an ATM for issuing and receiving cash

Fourth, a mobile phone can be used as a terminal for serving customers over the Internet. Banking services via the Internet (Internet banking) satisfies two main conditions that are of value to the client: the ability to control (instant access to the required account details) and convenience (the ability to remotely make payments and money transfers). Mobile phone and wireless communication can provide customers with an internet terminal.

In addition, devices based on a mobile phone can provide other opportunities in terms of combining technical means: communication, e-commerce and payment.

Mobile Commerce (M-commerce) is a term used to refer to the commercial activity of transactions performed using mobile phones... They may or may not include the use of funds. Thus, peer-to-peer ticket transfer does not imply the use of money, but still remains a mobile commerce operation.

Mobile commerce is not limited to mobile money only - including buying and selling goods and services and transferring funds or banking services provided via mobile devices, but includes activities such as marketing, delivery of goods and services, after-sales services and inquiries clients. The list of mobile commerce operations is very diverse (Fig. 3).

List of mobile commerce operations

Mobile money

Mobile money- a term for any financial transaction initiated or completed via a mobile phone. The list of services that can be provided using mobile money is varied. These services include:

• mobile payments;
• mobile banking;
• mobile transfers.

Since the forms of mobile money are an essential part of mobile commerce, mobile commerce and mobile money are often used interchangeably in the industry.

Mobile payments

Mobile payment is a kind of electronic methods of payment for goods and services using a mobile phone. With this service, you can pay for the Internet, utilities, travel (including the metro), traffic police fines, taxes, cinema tickets, satellite television, open an advance account and even make a money transfer. And the number of services that can be paid using a mobile phone is constantly increasing, they are becoming more diversified.

Note. To pay for goods in a store or while downloading digital content (for example, ringtones, games, wallpapers, themes, videos, etc.), pay a bill, buy tickets, or download coupons.

You can also pay for services using your personal account on the website of a mobile operator using an application installed on your phone / ava-application or an application on a SIM card, using special USSD requests on your mobile phone, as well as through an electronic wallet.

Physical goods (digital content)

Mobile payments allow subscribers to transfer funds in exchange for physical goods and digital content. Physical goods are purchased by visiting a physical or virtual store and making a payment through a mobile device. The business model allows retailers to offer added convenience to their customers by earning their loyalty and thereby creating new additional opportunities to increase business profitability. Users mainly purchase digital content (such as games, music, ringtones, wallpapers, mobile apps, etc.) via SMS and WAP. Depending on the possibilities mobile device payment is made either by using the details of the card registered or linked to the account of the application (this is how the MTS "Easy Payment" and "Master Card MOBILE" work) on the buyer's device, or a prepaid card purchased using funds on the buyer's account (at the bank or from a mobile operator).

Note. In the NPS Law, electronic payments are approved as a separate type of payments. In accordance with Art. 13 of this Law, mobile payments are made through electronic money systems.

In accordance with Art. 13 of the NPS Law, mobile payments are made through electronic money systems. The subscriber's account from which the payment is made automatically becomes an electronic wallet - this opens great opportunities and for operators cellular, and for operators of electronic money, and for banks. In addition, it provides significant synergies where e-commerce and mobile commerce operations can be transformed into conventional card-based instruments and vice versa.

In-app Payments (in-app payments)

In-app payments (in application payments / in-app payments) allow users to make micropayments for purchased digital assets, additional functionality or premium content within a mobile application. Such assets include virtual in-game goods (for example, airplanes, ammunition, car goods, goods Agriculture etc.), additional game levels, subscriptions and other forms of micro-transactions. In-app Payments also includes payments that are made when moving from the light (free) version to the full-featured (paid) version of the application.

Mobile tickets

"Mobile tickets"refers to a mobile payment system in which users use their mobile devices to buy, pay or receive tickets. This model of receiving tickets is convenient for consumers, since the process is reduced to just a few steps between buying and receiving a ticket. "mobile tickets" are used in cinemas, concerts, sporting events, airports, railway stations, in places of mass transportation of passengers, in parking lots, etc.

Basically, "mobile tickets" are provided on the basis of the following platforms (Fig. 4):

• tickets based on SMS;
• barcode-based tickets;
• NFC tickets.

Mobile ticket platforms

Mobile coupons

Mobile coupon is a type of electronic ticket delivered to a mobile phone that a consumer can exchange for a financial discount or special offer when purchasing a product or service. Coupons are presented for redemption by the subscriber by presenting a mobile device at a retail outlet in order to receive a discount when paying for goods at the checkout (at POS).

Delivery of mobile coupons to the consumer is as follows:

• at the initiative of the consumer: the user requests a coupon by sending a specific code in a text SMS message, or installs an application, activates it in order to receive mobile coupons;
• Merchant-Initiated: Retailers can send their ads along with coupons to mobile devices via SMS, MMS or WAP. Coupons can also be delivered to the user via an application installed on the mobile device.

Mobile banking

Mobile banking- getting access to banking services through a mobile device. These services include access to account information and transaction history, transferring funds, paying bills, buying and selling stocks and bonds. Mobile Banking allows the customer to access their bank accounts anywhere in the world at any time. The Mobile Bank integrates the existing networks of mobile operators with the banking infrastructure, opening up new directions and business opportunities for both mobile operators (MHOs) and financial institutions.

Mobile transfers

Mobile transfers- transfers from one individual to another natural person(peer-to-peer) using a network of mobile operators or mobile applications that allow transfers from card to card, from card to account or withdrawal of money to a money transfer system.

If the transfer is carried out cross-border, a number of restrictions may be imposed on its implementation, since, in fact, it involves central banks different countries, legislation, currency regulation and other organizations responsible for payment regulation. Nevertheless, money transfer systems that already operate in various countries and allow cross-border transfers are gradually providing their technologies for their use in mobile commerce.

Mobile wallet

A mobile wallet turns a user's mobile phone into a wallet, allowing debit, credit, smart and loyalty cards to be "stored" in it. It allows users to buy goods through a mobile transaction platform instead of paying with cash, credit or debit cards. A mobile wallet, available through the networks of mobile operators, allows the buyer to make payments on the networks retail products and services.

Essentially, a mobile wallet is an aggregator of payment instruments. It is also a kind of repository that stores certain client information, sufficient to make a financial transaction via a mobile phone. It also contains a certain mechanism that allows you to translate a payment instruction from a mobile device into a message to a financial institution for making a credit (debit) transaction and making settlements.

We can give a few examples of wallets operating today.

Google wallet

Google wallet- a mobile wallet service launched by Google in September 2011. At the time of launch, Google Wallet was limited to a narrow audience of Sprint users who have Citi MasterCard and a Nexus S 4G smartphone - not the most favorable conditions for a start. However, Google does not stand still, and almost immediately it became known that it had reached an agreement with VISA Europe to obtain an international license to use VISA PayWave NFC technology, which enables buyers to use their smartphones to make payments in the appropriate places. retail, the number of which around the world is in the hundreds of thousands.

The agreement allows VISA account holders to add their cards to Google's payment service and is an important step in realizing Google's overall vision for the future of mobile commerce.

VISA Europe also emphasizes the importance of this solution, which is fully consistent with the strategy of distributing its products as a means of payment in any digital wallet. VISA, in addition, has its own system, presented at the beginning of the year and developed within the framework of the click-to-buy concept, supporting both VISA accounts and third-party bank accounts on personal computers or smartphones.

Support for other card types such as Discover and American Express will be added in future versions of Google Wallet. The company is committed to creating an ecosystem that allows users to use the phone instead of numerous payment, gift, discount and other special cards. Google is also working with leading retailers to create a new mobile shopping experience.

QIWI Wallet

QIWI is the second largest payment system in Russia, accepting payments for services at 194 thousand points (100 thousand of its payment terminals) with an annual volume of more than USD 10 billion. The number of registered users is more than 20 million people, active - 5 million people.

QIWI is a brand (OSMP) and e-port of OE invesmens, 25% owned by DST group.

In 2008, QIWI launched its first mobile application. In fact, QIWI Wallet has become a payment system that allows you to make payments for services and money transfers from a mobile phone operating in the GSM standard.

In 2012, QIWI signed a special agreement with VISA and launched a new payment brand - the VISA QIWI Wallet mobile wallet. Today VISA QIWI Wallet:

• available in different interfaces: the Russian site w.qiwi.ru and the international site w.qiwi.com; applications for mobile phones, smartphones and tablets (iPhone, iPad, Android, Bada, Java, Blackberry);
• offers payment household services and recurring payments: Internet, telephone, TV, gas supply, electricity, taxes; support the "Favorite Payments and Auto Pay" menu; supports money transfers within Russia and abroad, including instant money transfers without commission;
• makes it possible to make purchases in Runet online stores. Supports their own billing system, allows you to purchase cinema and theater tickets;
• makes it possible to make purchases in online stores around the world thanks to virtual cards QIWI VISA Virtual and QIWI VISA Card;
• allows you to make any purchases offline with QIWI VISA Plastic;
• can be used for travel and business trips: to purchase train tickets, airplane. You can use QVP in shops, restaurants and hotels around the world.

At the same time, the company provides convenient conditions for using VISA QIWI Wallet and its payment instruments, including various different ways replenishment of the wallet without commission and different ways of withdrawing money. Regular promotions with partners of the system, multilateral user support - on different sites on the Runet on the most significant issues make this tool very popular in Russia.

Apple mobile wallet

In early 2013, Apple filed an application with the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO), which describes the concept of Apple's mobile smartphone app that allows you to link your iPhone's wallet to your credit card and make purchases using your smartphone.

The main feature of the service, called "Parental Control", will be the ability to create additional accounts, thanks to which the iPhone user can open access to his e-wallet to his children, as well as other relatives and friends.

The account holder can limit the amount financial resources that can be used by the owner of an additional account, for example, set a limit for a week or a month.

If the child wants to spend more than the allowed amount, the parent can remotely cancel the transaction using the iPhone. Using the application, the account holder can also prohibit financial transactions for certain groups of goods and restrict the use of funds in a particular store, i.e. a parent can prevent the teenager from buying alcohol or cigarettes.

The application also provides for storing information about purchases, tracking account data and searching for specific transactions.

The application implies that Apple will release an iPhone that will support NFC technology for mobile payments, which allows data from a smartphone to be read up to 10 cm from the reader.

information and communication network based on Internet protocols,
software applications and human resources that use information networks and software applications in their work to carry out transactions in real time,
entities that enter into commercial (economic) relations with each other: enterprises, government organizations, individual citizens and households who buy, sell and
exchange goods, services and information directly or through intermediaries.
Analyzing the above, in electron Noah merchant ui two categories can be distinguished: infrastructure and economic activity.
In turn, the category of infrastructure can be subdivided into infrastructure. structure Internet (level 1) and Internet application infrastructure (level 2).
Infrastructure The Internet is a global network of high-speed personal computers and is the physical basis electron Noah merchant ui. Electronic infra structure and its associated human resources make it technically feasible to conduct business on the Internet. At this level, companies operate that produce personal computers, servers, fiber-optic communication lines, network devices and software, Internet providers, etc.
Infra structure Internet applications includes v myself software and software applications, consulting, training and integrated services, including maintenance of networks. At this level work Internet consultants, companies for the development of commercial Internet applications, software for web developers and the creation of search engines, multimedia applications, real-time training, etc.

Category economic activity can also be subdivided into two components: transactions involving electron of those intermediaries (level 3) and direct transactions in real time (online) (level 4).
Internet intermediaries increase efficiency electron of those markets, helping buyers and sellers find each other, facilitating their interaction and providing various types of marketing services: developing a strategy for attracting buyers, examining domains, helping buyers in the selection of goods and sellers, as well as aggregated services that reduce transaction costs. They act as catalysts for transforming investments in infrastructure and Internet applications into real-time transactions and reduce transformation costs. Internet intermediaries include online brokers, portals, advertising agents, etc.
Real-time direct deals are carried out by companies that sell goods and services to individual buyers and / or companies / government structures through the Internet. Companies operating at this level include retailers ( electron nye shops), manufacturers of computer equipment and software that sell their goods, transport companies, travel companies and many other participants in market relations.

All levels electron Noah merchant ui have an interdependent relationship with each other. For example, changes in the first and second infrastructures structures cause corresponding changes at the level of economic activity, which allows companies at the third and fourth sublevels to improve the information component, expand the range of new digital products and services (information and software products that are delivered in real time) and change the form of business communication with partners (suppliers, manufacturers, consumers). This interdependency can also be expressed in the form of alliances, in which providers that provide communications and support, application developers and electron nye merchants are an alliance to create aggregated (aggregate) offers to consumers.
The key understanding of the role of the Internet lies precisely through the analysis of these complementary connections between different levels. electron Noah merchant ui. It should also be emphasized that the Internet is a technology of evolving opportunities, which carries the so-called property of universal penetration inherent in technologies. general purpose.
Technologies of developing opportunities are some technical and technological advances that can cause
positive changes in other areas (a chain of innovative changes emerges). Since the Internet is not an isolated technological phenomenon and affects all forms of economic and social organizations, it is logical to conclude that this is a common use technology, which is based on transmitting and transforming processes.
The general penetration property of general-purpose technology means widespread use overall function often in unrelated applications. For example, advances in IT can be leveraged by individual households, industries to enhance communications, various electron nym shops, etc.
The technological dynamism of general-purpose technologies supports innovation processes, expands the possibilities of learning, accumulation of knowledge, knowledge management, which in turn leads to a further increase in the efficiency of these technologies and the processes associated with them. Just as a century ago, the invention of the railroad had far-reaching implications for the reorganization of trade (connecting geographic markets and changing the properties of goods) and the economy as a whole, the Internet is already influencing change. existing forms merchant ai / business, services and goods.
Most often in the market space electron Noah merchant ui firms use the strategies of leaders and followers, that is, companies learn from
examples of other companies that have successfully overcome entry into electron new market space.
Fast growth electron Noah merchant ui is changing the way we do business. But the important question is what needs to be done to make these changes effective and maximize productivity. Many economists point out that technical and technological innovations are widely diffused only after they begin to bring tangible benefits in the form of innovations based on them, or in the form of real economic income.
There are at least two reasons why companies are betting on technology. electron Noah merchant ui. At first, information Technology are becoming the main tool in conducting business activities today, and the Internet is becoming a business environment. Secondly, electron naya merchant and I is also a catalyst for fundamental structural, operational and managerial changes in the organization of business and other processes in society (education process: electron new education - e-learning; public administration processes: electron new government - e-government). These changes are the reason for the emergence of new forms of relationships between the subjects of economic and social life and, as a consequence, the emergence of new models of doing business.

To consider electron nuyu merchant ju you can use the following parameters:
in terms of space: open infra structure The Internet makes the environment (Internet) in which transactions are carried out in electron Noah merchant ui, global (limitless).
in terms of time: electron naya merchant and I allows you to sell and buy goods, services and information on the Internet in real time (model: 24/7/265) online;
in terms of making connections: electron naya merchant and I is a method of carrying out business activities, delivering information, goods, services and payments using telephone lines, computer networks or any other electron of those funds;
in terms of business process: electron naya merchant and I is a technology that allows you to automate business operations (automate business activity);
- in terms of services: electron naya merchant and I- a tool that allows companies, organizations, buyers and managers to reduce costs and improve the quality of goods and services, increase the openness of processes, speed up delivery, etc.
Classification electron Noah merchant ui in terms of transactions
There are the following types of transactions in electron Noah merchant ui(table 1.2.1):

B2B is business-to-business. A large share of all transactions carried out today in electron Noah merchant ui today it is this model. This type electron Noah merchant and includes v myself intra-organizational systems (IOS) and electron nye markets.
B2C is a business consumer. These are transactions carried out in a retail system with an individual customer. The typical shopper on any store site is a consumer or a shopper.
С2С - consumer-consumer. In this category, the consumer sells the product directly to the consumer. An example of such a scheme is the operations on the ad site www.classified2000.com. selling on the site personal real estate in the form of houses, land plots, as well as cars, etc. Another example of C2C is the provision of advertising services on the Internet, the sale of information, and the provision of consulting services. Many people use intranets and other intranets to advertise products and services.
С2В - consumer - business. This category represents the type electron Noah merchant ui, in which an individual consumer sells goods or services to organizations, and also looks for sellers, interacts with them and makes a deal.
G2G - government / budget organization - government / budget organization - is a system of networks and software applications for sharing information and reducing costs
(First of all, by changing the workflow system and reducing the number of required employees) government structures and other budgetary (non-profit) organizations. In addition, such transactions include transactions between budgetary organizations (for example, when purchasing weapons by the Ministry of Defense), in which the goal is not to obtain commercial profit, but to reduce costs.
G2B and G2C - government / budgetary organization - business and government / budgetary organization - consumer - use of funds electron Noah merchant ui to exchange information and reduce costs (primarily on paperwork and reduce the number of employees).
B2G - business government / budgetary organization - transactions are carried out between the government / budgetary organization and industrial enterprise in the form of public procurement / supplies.
C2G - consumer - government / budget organization - use of funds electron Noah merchant ui to reduce the cost of payment systems and improve the taxation system.

Table 1.2.1 Classification electron of those transactions

funds electron Noah merchant ui primarily in order to reduce their costs, which allows redirecting the freed up funds to other areas, and thus, contribute to the development of economic and social spheres of activity.
In addition, the category of intra-organizational electron Noah merchant ui, to which all intra-company transactions can be attributed, that is, transactions carried out within a separate organization, usually presented on the intranet. These operations include v myself exchange of goods, services and information. Actions can range from selling corporate merchandise to employees to real-time training of company employees using internal sites instead of sending them training videotapes, which significantly reduces costs.

1. Introduction

Since the mid-1990s, there has been an increase in online trading activity around the world. Traders of traditional goods began to appear on the Internet after large companies producing computer equipment. A large number of bookstores, CD and video cassette stores, and liquor stores have sprung up. Now almost any goods can be bought through the Internet.

Electronic commerce (e-commerce) is the acceleration of most business processes due to their implementation in an electronic way. In this case, the information is transmitted directly to the recipient, bypassing the stage of creating a hard copy at each stage.

The term "e-commerce" combines many different technologies, including EDI (Electronic Data Interchange - electronic data interchange), email, internet, intranet (exchange of information within the company), extranet (exchange of information with the outside world)... Thus, e-commerce can be characterized as doing business over the Internet.

E-commerce systems can be divided into two classes - systems for organizing retail and systems for interacting with business partners ( business-to-consumer and business-to-business systems).

The definition of e-commerce includes not only Internet-oriented systems, but also "e-shops" using other communication media - BBS, VAN, etc. At the same time, sales procedures initiated by information from the WWW, but using fax, telephone, etc. for data exchange, can only partially be classified as e-commerce. Note also that, despite the fact that the WWW is the technological base of e-commerce, a number of systems use other communication capabilities. So, requests to the seller to clarify the parameters of the goods or to place an order can be sent via e-mail.

What information can be transmitted electronically?

Any information that can be created on a computer. For example, text files, spreadsheets, databases, pictures, orders, invoices, payments, information requests, price lists, multimedia data, etc.

2. Benefits of e-commerce

If retail electronic stores are still exotic for the Russian market, many companies have already felt the benefits of doing business via the Internet. This has become especially relevant in the context of the economic crisis and is associated with the benefits that the company will receive after using Internet technologies.

There are many benefits, here are just a few:

• the efficiency of obtaining information is significantly increased, especially in international operations;
• the cycle of production and sale is significantly reduced, because it is no longer necessary to enter the received documents every time, and the likelihood of input errors is reduced;
• the costs associated with the exchange of information are significantly reduced due to the use of cheaper means of communication;
• the use of Internet e-commerce technologies allows the company to become more open in relation to customers;
• allows you to quickly and easily inform partners and customers about products and services;
• allows you to create alternative sales channels, for example, through an electronic store on a corporate website.

3. Using e-commerce

The use of modern Internet technologies in business is not limited to the creation of a website or electronic catalog with the possibility of ordering, but implies the use of technology and accumulated experience to deeply restructure the way of doing business using the Internet and related network computer technology... E-commerce is the process of making money using Internet technologies.

The success of the implementation of the e-commerce model on the Web is determined by three components:

• Choosing the right technology platform
• Availability of a competitive product
• Availability of the necessary infrastructure and business processes

If at least one of these links is missing, then the introduction modern technologies will not lead to success.

First of all, the use of online trading technologies is necessary for companies with a developed regional partner network, as it will significantly reduce the cost of order processing. Figure 1 shows the diagrams of the process of purchasing a product before and after the introduction of e-commerce technology in a wholesale company.

Picture 1.

After introducing a methodology for working with regional partners via the Internet, the company was able to reduce the cost of registration and order processing by more than 2 times.

Today, credit cards are the dominant means of payment for on-line purchases. However, new payment instruments are also entering the scene: smart cards, digital cash, micropayments and electronic checks.

One of the most interesting and popular areas is the online book business. Quite a lot of stores sell books, but first of all Ozone should be called - the most successful trade project in the Russian-language network today. Unlike the overwhelming majority of Russian chain stores, this is a really working store. When it comes to the prospects for online bookselling: According to a recent survey, 40% of those who shop online or plan to do so prioritize buying books.

Also, 40% of the respondents voted for a service that should have great potential - the ability to book tickets through the Network. This service is provided by the server Transinform which also works through the system CyberPlat.

Renowned Provider Service Demos provides users with the ability to pay for dial-up Internet access online. According to the survey, 34% of users find this service convenient and attractive. And, apparently, in the near future, it will also be popular.

Recently, the number of stores offering computers and components, software and other similar products has been growing quite rapidly. As one of the most successful examples you can bring a Moscow store "X-WORLD".

With the rapid growth of the information services-oriented portion of the market, the number of services focused on paid information is also increasing.

Another specific category of services (and, by the way, according to the survey results, the most interesting for customers - it was put on the list of priorities by 50% of respondents) is payment utilities, phone and the like. And there is such an opportunity - for system users CyberPlat a payment order mechanism is provided, with the help of which such payments can be made online.

Also, according to the same survey, 40% of users express a desire to buy music media - CDs and cassettes, 28% - videotapes.

Thus, a certain proposal already exists. Despite the difference in scale compared to the Western market, for Russian business structures the Internet is also a means of reducing costs and optimizing business processes. Therefore, e-commerce will certainly develop. But the nature of its development is strongly influenced by the demand factor, and the demand is solvent.

One of the essential factors in the activation of effective demand is the organization of a payment system that is optimal from the point of view of the buyer. Development of a commercial bank "Platinum"- system CyberPlat, launched commercially in March 1998, became the first real payment mechanism in the Russian e-commerce market. System users - e-shops and their customers have been able to accept payments and pay for purchases online using credit cards and bank accounts. An effective protection mechanism based on the use of electronic digital signatures ensured a high degree of system security and the possibility of making large payments. Risks of the client's refusal to make a payment are the business risk of the bank.

4. Prospects for the development of e-commerce

Until recently, e-commerce was somewhat reminiscent of the popular game "Monopoly" - a lot of players at the table, but no guarantee that they will stay in the game.

However, the Internet commerce playing field has changed significantly, and these changes are irreversible. A recent survey of over 100 companies with over 500 employees by Zona Research showed that about 80% of them use the Internet for marketing, and 10% are already in e-commerce. The study also found that nearly 45% of these companies plan to start implementing Internet sales programs in the next year or two.

The Gartner Group predicts similar growth for the e-commerce market (Figure 2).

Figure 2.

This graph shows the percentage increase in the number of e-commerce businesses.

The Gartner Group predicts steady growth in e-commerce through the year 2000. This number will increase with the development of the merchant network, technical infrastructure and applications.

Some companies, for example, Dell Computer are already claiming significant success in e-commerce. Dell uses a Web server not only to organize sales, but also to reduce the cost of technical support... Other successful e-commerce companies include Federal express and Cisco Systems.

But like Monopoly, e-commerce has its own rules. Next, I will try to look at some of them and how they can contribute to financial success in both the consumer and corporate sectors of the market.

5. Web EDI technology and XML-based e-commerce

The new XML has a chance to do what no other Web technology has done before — to supplant the Electronic Data Interchange (EDI) standard and become the primary vehicle for online business between companies.

Several emerging e-commerce vendors have already announced their support for Extensible Markup Language (XML). A number of major network providers with additional services(value-added networks, VAN), offering their customers electronic data interchange capabilities, have also embarked on development in this area. They all believe that this offspring of Standard Generalized Markup Language (SGML) has what it takes to provide more cost-effective, flexible and interactive electronic data interchange functions than EDI. “The EDI standard reminds me of an animal being dragged back and forth,” jokes Rusty Gordon, electronic data interchange manager at an Illinois manufacturing company. "XML, on the other hand, is associated with a lively, nimble, responsive animal that can bring a lot of benefits." XML, which describes how data is used and stored, is capable of providing communication between applications. In this it is reminiscent of EDI technologies, which allow mainframes to exchange documents that comply with the ANSI X12 and EDIFACT standards. Firms play an active role in XML adoption Sterling Commerce(Dublin, Ohio) and General Electric Information Services(Rockville, MD). Together with the CommerceNet task force, they are exploring how the language can interact with EDI, and are developing standard XML forms for business transactions such as product orders. XML is also supported by the company IBM Global Services(Sommers, NY).

According to its representatives, the firm is going to roll out new services using this language at the end of this year. By the same time, the products of two emerging e-commerce vendors - firms Trade'ex Electronic Commerce System and St. Paul Software who staked on the development of XML technology. Trade'ex Electronic Commerce System, based in Tampa, Florida, which produces a suite of applications for data exchange between companies, is developing the Trade'ex Transport Protocol. Its main purpose is to create an encrypted communication channel like a VPN (virtual private network) based on the Jsafe toolkit from RSA Data Security. At the Internet and Electronic Commerce Expo hosted by the Gartner Group in New York in April this year, Trade'ex CTO Jard Rodriguez explained that such a channel would allow companies to exchange XML forms that perform the same functions as EDI. St. Paul Software (St. Paul, Minnesota), which produces EDI electronic data interchange software. As stated by its representatives, work is already underway to organize information storage using XML. It is expected that this step will simplify the description of the recipient of the document within the enterprise. The costs of doing business online with value-added services are too expensive for many small businesses.

However, according to a report from Forrester Research in Cambridge, Massachusetts, XML-based transactions can be sent over encrypted VPN tunnels at half the price using public networks. To date, the World Wide Web Consortium has released only the first version of the XML specification, which EDI users have been wary of. Even such enthusiasts of this language as Gordon cannot fail to note that there are not many companies ready to abandon the already deployed means of electronic data interchange. In addition, XML by itself is not capable of offering all that a user receives in value-added networks. EDI veterans already have a bitter experience of lost hope. Two years ago, it was loudly promised that Web EDI would soon replace value-added networks. But the predictions did not come true. The proposed technology copied the existing EDI packet transmission model, and used the S / MIME (Secure MIME) protocol to send HTML documents over the World Wide Web. This approach provided some cost savings, but did not in the least improve the already debugged process and practically did not give any incentive to abandon existing systems... Horizon Trading (Washington) is already using EDI technology to send documents to its customers. COO Browning Rockwell calls the EDI / XML convergence "exciting intrigue," but warns that the split between the Internet and XML advocates on the one hand and EDI (and thus legacy systems) on the other will not modernize existing systems. ... Rockwell hopes the CommerceNet working group can make XML documents compatible with traditional EDI formats, including the X12 data type. “XML is very promising,” he says. - But can this language justify the hopes? It all depends on whether he manages to reach the critical mass, and if he does, how long it will take. "

6. Software tools for e-commerce and their costs

The costs of e-commerce vary depending on the nature of the intended commerce. Here I will cover the most typical costs of a virtual enterprise.

It would seem that anyone can come up with an effective electronic point of sale scheme, implement it on the Internet and reap the benefits, but this is a delusion.

"Implementing a Web server requires a lot of logistical work," said Joseph Reid, senior vice president of electronic brokerage at Reality Online(his company provides financial institutions services via the Internet). "Logistics requires a lot of investment."

One of the main issues is the creation of the necessary infrastructure. The underlying network infrastructure must be mature enough to meet the stringent requirements of e-commerce. You may need to build or upgrade a database server, install a more powerful gateway, or lease a larger bandwidth to increase throughput. In any case, all the necessary changes and the associated costs must be assessed before the plan for creating a virtual store is set in motion.

Depending on which way you choose to implement e-commerce, you may need to consider the costs of various tools and services. The costs of creating and maintaining the server yourself versus the cost of using the services outside organization may differ markedly.

For small companies where they prefer to do everything themselves, the market offers tools for creating Web content such as Internet Creator. Forman Interactive for about $ 149. Internet Creator includes support for Java applets, automatic ftp downloads, and improved transactional features.

Those looking for full Web support can use, for example, the e-commerce component of the company's Content Hosting Services. IBM... Based on Net Commerce server software, the new services include the necessary software and hardware to build and operate an e-commerce server. These security, content management, and order tracking services will cost the customer $ 3,500 in upfront fees and an additional $ 3,500 monthly.

Another category is dedicated servers such as Web commerce servers. Prices for the company's Transact servers OpenMarket Enterprise and e-commerce versions start at $ 125,000 and $ 250,000, respectively. Transact has facilities for online customer identification and authorization, order and payment processing, order control and status, and customer service. ENetwork Communications Server for AIX 5.0 companies IBM enables the integration of the Internet and e-commerce applications by providing the required advanced functionality. The product is priced at $ 995 per server and $ 69 per logged in user.

Electronic showcase - distinctive feature ecommerce. Viaweb charges interactive merchants $ 100 per month for posting information on 20 products, $ 300 for 1,000 items, and $ 100 for each additional thousand items. Software Viaweb Store 4.0 allows you to create a virtual storefront using a regular browser.

Electronic payment transaction processing software for online merchants NetVerify is provided by the company IC Verify on an annual lease. The program license for Windows for the first year costs $ 900, and for all subsequent years - $ 450. Placing information about goods from other companies on your server will cost the server owner less than $ 250 per year.

You can also get more specialized services. Requisite Technology offers compilation of catalogs for e-commerce. So, it provides a subscription to Request for Buyers - an electronic catalog with information about the offer of goods in various categories. This catalog of office equipment, computers, peripherals, etc. has a graphical interface with which a supplier or a casual user can find the goods they need, compare their parameters, find out about the cost, delivery and availability of the selected product. Request for Buyers contains four components: a desktop interface, a customizable product and supplier catalog, catalog and content creation services, and catalog sales. The fee for the catalog and services is charged depending on the number of employees and the selected product categories. For example, such a service would cost a Fortune 1000 company with 10 divisions and 50,000 employees $ 250,000-1,000,000 a year.

7. Hardware for e-commerce and their costs

The hardware must have adequate capacity to support the e-commerce server. If we talk about high-end systems, then it is worth mentioning the company's System / 390 mainframe IBM with improved I / O and enhanced support for TCP / IP and Java applications.

But sometimes a simpler and cheaper solution is enough. For example, for the operation of the part of the system that belongs to the online store of the "Formosa" company (Web-server, Web-application server, request broker), a computer, which is not very powerful by today's standards, is used, equipped with a Pentium / 90 processor with 48 MB RAM running on Solaris OS. According to experts "Formosa-Soft", its resources are still sufficient to serve the existing flow of clients.

A well-known Web bookseller recently acquired several eight-processor servers Hewlett-Packard to eliminate the slightest possibility of costly downtime.

Even in the smallest configuration, such systems are expensive. However, in the case of e-commerce, they pay off, especially when you consider the alternative - clumsy, overloaded systems that may one day be too heavy for the load placed on them.

8. Software solutions for e-commerce

Internal operations, such as maintaining and populating huge databases, are one of the most difficult tasks in building an e-commerce server.

Introducing Domino 5.0 recently, the company Lotus stated that the integration with Java will make the system much more flexible to support both external and internal applications; and this, in turn, favors support for the various components of e-commerce.

By the way, Catherine Webster, Team Leader for E-Commerce Development at Sun Microsystems, points out that online traders are coming to realize the need to integrate their nodes more closely with internal and legacy systems. According to Webster, Java-based applications of the second, intermediate, tier will be very useful for building bridges between them.

Some e-commerce applications target specific vertical markets, in particular the provision of online brokerage services. An example is Reuters Investor Direct from Reality Online... With this service, customers can view stock quotes in real time, view their current balance, and place orders for stocks, mutual funds, spin-offs and bonds. An unlimited subscription costs $ 16 per month.

Sun Microsystems has developed an architecture called SunConnect for building and deploying Web-based financial services. This Java-based architecture includes support for the Open Financial Exchange Interactive Transactions Specification and other messaging specifications.

9. Information protection

According to research Forrester Research entitled "The Economics of Security," most of the cost of securing a network comes from encrypting data and hardening firewalls. However, acquisitions such as tools for accelerated encryption, digital certificate maintenance, and security policy management usually pay off in very high rates. short term especially when you consider the potential financial cost of compromising a commercial Web server's security. The study also notes that 40% of all support calls are related to password recovery requests from forgetful users. You can significantly reduce the cost of this support line item by using smart cards.

Finally, in the study Forrester Fortune 1000 companies are said to spend less than $ 1 million a year on network security. This amount may not seem so small, but it is nothing compared to the potential damage from a security breach.

Gina Klein Jorash, Director of Corporate Marketing at VeriSign, a provider of digital certificate services and e-commerce products, reports that customer costs for digital certificates range from $ 400- $ 1,000 for a single Web server certificate to $ 200,000-1,000,000 for a full service.

In addition to these costs, you need to consider the cost of essential security components such as firewalls.

One of the most important security issues is the issue of standards. The Secure Electronic Transaction (SET) standard is backed by companies such as CyberCash, Netscape Communications and RSA Data Security(offering a SET developer kit). But there are other standards, such as Secure / MIME and United Nations / Electronic Data Interchange for Administration, Commerce, and Transport (UN / EDIFACT). So until there is uniformity, decisions about product choices and protection methods will be difficult to make.

10. Internet shop

10.1 What it looks like

So, what does a user see when they enter the store? First, a list of items in stock. Since the online “counter” is usually tied to the automation system of some enterprise, this list contains the same products that are available on sale in regular (non-virtual) stores. The content of the warehouse is usually presented in the form of a hierarchical tree structure, the basic elements of which are groups of goods. If you click on a group, it expands, opening a list of subgroups or specific products of a certain type. Sometimes a customer can see a picture with a picture of a product and its characteristics, as well as add it to their shopping cart. Having filled the basket, the client gives the command “Execute the order” and chooses the form of payment convenient for him. If he buys in a store for the first time, he is usually asked to provide some information about himself - name, phone number, address, etc. A corporate buyer provides the name of the company, account number, name and phone number of the contact person. At this stage, the buyer is assigned a certain identification code... This is done so that when he enters the store next time, all the above information can be omitted - just enter your code. Then an invoice is sent to the client, according to which he can pay and receive the goods in the store within a certain time. As I said before, the online store allows you to pay by credit card. In this case, along with information about himself or his code, the client provides the credit card number, after which the credit card is authorized in the processing center. If successful, the money on the client's account is blocked, and the goods are reserved in the warehouse. After that, the company's employees contact the buyer by phone and send him the goods by courier; if desired, the client can come to the store and pick up the purchase himself. At the moment of transfer of the goods, the customer's credit card is rolled, and he fixes the transaction with his signature on the slip. Since the authorization of the card is carried out at the time of booking the goods, then when it is rolled, interaction with the processing center is no longer required. At the end of the operation, the slip is transferred to the bank, and the money is debited from the buyer's account and transferred to the store's account. A corporate client can simply be sent an invoice with all the details. The goods can be received in the store or delivered to the customer after the transfer of money on this account.

10.2 Internal arrangement

Let's consider the internal structure using the example of some Russian online stores.

The store's client interface can be a Java applet loaded into the user's browser. This applet can be sent to the client either in compressed CAB format (if using Microsoft Internet Explorer) or uncompressed (if using Netscape Navigator). In the first case, the user can get started a little faster, although experience with the store shows that the load times when using Navigator are also quite acceptable. To display messages, the applet usually uses vector fonts, this allows (although not very fast) to display messages in Russian on any browser that supports Java specifications 1.0.2 and higher. Using a fairly old version of Java also guarantees compatibility with the most common types of browsers. The applet establishes a connection via IIOP (Internet InterORB Protocol) with a CORBA-compatible request broker (for example, the company's online store "Formosa"), essentially functioning as a transaction monitor. The second “end” of the broker is connected to a web application server interacting with the “Monopoly” system. This server, which is a proprietary development of the company "Formosa", entirely written in C ++. The store home page can be accessed using the Apache Web server, and Oracle 7 can be used to organize the enterprise database. Since the applet uses an additional port to communicate with the request broker, the online store may not work for customers using certain types. firewalls or proxy agents. The entire operation of the complex is controlled by the operator, who, in particular, is entrusted with the responsibility of communicating with customers and cutting off some of the users who apparently entered the store only to “play” (such users often indicate their name, address and phone number like “ggg”, “Bill Gates” , “White House”, “1234567”, etc.). In addition, he monitors the correct operation of the store and the authorization system on a daily basis.

10.3 Organization of payments

One of the most interesting features of the store is its integration with the payment system, allowing purchases with credit cards.

Payment systems can be divided into credit, debit and digital cash systems.

10.3.1 Credit Systems.

Credit systems are analogous to conventional systems with payments made using credit cards, only using the Internet for data transfer and with a number of security services - digital signature, data encryption, etc. Such systems include CyberCash, Open Market, First Virtual, all systems using the SET protocol. The main disadvantages of credit systems are:

• the need to check the creditworthiness of the client and authorize the card, which increases the costs of the transaction and makes the systems unsuitable for micropayments, which are the target market for Internet payment systems;
• lack of anonymity and, as a result, intrusive service on the part of trade structures;
• limited number of shops that accept credit cards;
• for buyers (this is especially true for Russia) - the need to open a credit account and a complex of "transferring card data over the network."

At the moment, although some projects have not been completed yet, a lot of e-commerce companies offer services using the protocol, new applications for SET, etc. Many people integrate SET and other technologies to achieve maximum privacy and security of payments. Now almost all large Internet payment systems offer services using the SET protocol. СyberCash, famous company operating in the market of secure Internet payments, now actively offers all its clients to work using the SET protocol, promoting its advantages and in every possible way proving that now it is definitely possible to participate in e-commerce without fear of anything. Here are the advantages of using SET:

• sellers are protected from purchases with an unauthorized payment card and from refusal to purchase;
• banks are protected from unauthorized purchases;
• customers will not suffer from the interception of the credit card number and from purchases from non-existent sellers.

10.3.2 Debit systems

Debit systems - exist in the form of electronic equivalents of paper checks. For example, NetCheque, NetChex. In the NetCheque system, when an account is opened, electronic document, which contains the name of the payer, name financial structure, the payer's account number, the name (name) of the payee and the amount of the check. Most of the information is not encoded. Like a paper check, NetCheque has an electronic signature (digital grouping) that confirms that the check actually comes from the account holder. Before a check is paid, it must be confirmed electronic signature payee.

10.3.3 Digital Cash

Digital cash, in essence, is also related to debit systems. There are two types of digital cash - stored on smart cards (Mondex) and stored on a computer's hard drive (examples are: Digicash, Netcash, CyberCoin) According to some experts, there is a high probability that these types will merge into one over time ...

These systems are essentially analogous to cash. Electronic counterparts of cash bills are pre-purchased from the provider of the system in which payments will be made.The life cycle of electronic money, for example, developed by Digicash, contains the following stages: first, the client creates electronic bills on his computer, identifying their denomination and serial number and certifying them own digital signature. Then he sends them to the bank, which, when real money arrives in the account, signs these bills, knowing only their denomination, and sends them back to the client. When buying, the client sends the bills to the seller (and the seller does not receive any information about the buyer, but the buyer can always prove that he made the purchase, since only he knows the serial numbers of his bills), who presents them to the bank that verifies the authenticity and makes credits to the account the seller.

The main advantages of such systems are the following:

• systems are suitable for micro payments;
• anonymity can be ensured.

The negative sides may include:

• the need for preliminary purchase of banknotes;
• lack of the possibility of providing a loan.

The most frequently discussed topic regarding online shopping is the issue of risk sharing. It is clear that when making a purchase with a card, everyone is at risk - the user who provides the card number, the store that accepts it, and the bank transferring money. However, experts believe that a person who uses a credit card for purchases in his Internet shop is at no more risk than someone who uses it in a regular store.

Security schemes for the user of credit cards have long been developed and are successfully applied to Internet transactions. For example, it is the responsibility of a store employee (including a courier) to check the buyer's passport for compliance with the information on the credit card. In the absence of a passport, the operation may be canceled. Therefore, it is difficult to buy something with someone else's credit card in the online store. Until the store has received a slip of the card, certified by the client's signature, the money will not be transferred from the latter's bank account.

The bank and the payment system as a whole also run little risk, since the money returned to the client, if necessary, is ultimately collected from the merchant that accepted the card. The store bears the greatest risk in this operation, since in which case it ends up without goods and money. To minimize its risk, the store does not immediately withdraw the required amount from the client's account, but only reserves it. In the future, the buyer and the seller must meet when transferring the goods. At this moment, the so-called slip (documentary proof of purchase) is created, on which the cardholder signs. The received slip is a confirmation of the completed transaction for the store and the processing center. At the time of removing the slip, the cashier (or courier) verifies the signature of the cardholder with the sample and in disputable situations may ask you for your passport.

In general, the risk to the merchant when working over the Internet is comparable to that of the normal use of credit cards. Many Russian virtual stores work with the "Multicarta" processing center, which solves all tasks related to the authorization of credit cards.

For physical connection to the payment system network at different stages, we used different technologies... Initially, access was carried out over telephone lines, and users had to wait a long time until a connection was established and authorization was completed. Many stores now use an Internet to X.25 gateway provided by an ISP.

11. Conclusion

The situation with e-commerce in Russia remains rather difficult. This is due to the imperfection and inconsistency of domestic legislation, as well as due to the low purchasing power of the citizens of our country. Most of the online stores in Russia are, if I may say so, solely on enthusiasm.

In addition, a large number of Russian virtual stores at the moment are only catalogs: when making a purchase, they send the user an invoice, which must be paid by himself, having come to the bank. At the same time, one of the main advantages of e-commerce is lost - the ability to buy any product without leaving home. But all among them there are companies that have managed to properly organize their online store and make real profits. For example, the company's online store "Formosa"(shop.formoza.ru) is online point of sale in Russia, which is integrated with the enterprise automation system and at the same time allows payment by credit card. It is also extremely important that the online store "Formosa" works not through offshore zones, but through the payment system of a domestic bank. Linking to the enterprise automation system allows you to synchronize the contents of the "counter" of the store with the current state of the company's warehouse and make a reservation of goods. An even larger number of Internet shops operate abroad. In other words, online shopping, as well as other forms of e-commerce, must take their place in the 21st century. And I am confident that this technology will replace many modern types of commerce. This is confirmed by a study conducted by the European research company Datamaster (London), it notes that by 2001 70% of all home purchases will be made via the Internet.