E-Commerce: Course outline

1. Introduction to e-Commerce

To define electronic commerce (EC) and describe its various categories. Describe and discuss the content and framework of EC. Describe the major types of EC transactions. Describe the digital revolution as a driver of EC. Describe the business environment as a driver of EC. Describe some EC business models. Describe the benefits of EC to organizations, consumers, and society. Describe the limitations of EC. Describe the contribution of EC to organizations responding to environmental pressures.

2. e-Commerce Infrastructure

Define e-marketplaces and list their components. List the major types of e-marketplaces and describe their features. Describe the various types of EC intermediaries and their roles. Describe electronic catalogs, shopping carts, and search engines. Describe the various types of auctions and list their characteristics. Discuss the benefits, limitations, and impacts of auctions. Describe bartering and negotiating online. Define m-commerce and explain its role as a market mechanism. Discuss liquidity, quality, and success factors in e-marketplaces. Describe the economic impact of EC. Discuss competition in the digital economy. Describe the impact of e-marketplaces on organizations

3. Business Models and e-Commerce

Describe electronic retailing (e-tailing) and its characteristics. Define and describe the primary e-tailing business models. Describe how online travel and tourism services operate and their impact on the industry. Discuss the online employment market, including its participants, benefits, and limitations. Describe online real estate services. Discuss online stock-trading services. Discuss cyberbanking and online personal finance. Describe on-demand delivery by e-grocers. Describe the delivery of digital products and online entertainment. Discuss various e-tail consumer aids, including comparison-shopping aids. Identify the critical success factors and failure avoidance tactics for direct online marketing and e-tailing. Describe reintermediation, channel conflict, and personalization in e-tailing

4. e-Commerce Strategy

Describe the factors that influence consumer behavior online. Understand the decision-making process of consumer purchasing online. Describe how companies are building one-to-one relationships with customers. Explain how personalization is accomplished online. Discuss the issues of e-loyalty and e-trust in EC. Describe consumer market research in EC. Describe Internet marketing in B2B, including organizational buyer behavior. Describe the objectives of Web advertising and its characteristics. Describe the major advertising methods used on the Web. Describe various online advertising strategies and types of promotions. Describe permission marketing, ad management, localization, and other advertising-related issues. Understand the role of intelligent agents in consumer issues and advertising applications.

5. Supply Chain Management and e-Commerce

Define the e-supply chain and describe its characteristics and components. List supply chain problems and their causes. List solutions to supply chain problems provided by EC. Define c-commerce and list the major types. Describe collaborative planning and Collaboration, Planning, Forecasting, and Replenishing (CPFR) and list the benefits of each. Define intra business EC and describe its major activities. Discuss integration along the supply chain. Understand corporate portals and their types and roles. Describe e-collaboration tools such as workflow software and groupware.

6.  Innovative EC Systems

Describe e-government to citizens (G2C) to businesses (G2B) and to others. Describe various e-government initiatives. Discuss online publishing, e-books, and blogging. Describe e-learning and virtual universities. Describe knowledge management and dissemination as an e-business. Describe C2C activities. Understand how peer-to-peer technology works in intra business, in B2B, and in C2C

7. e-Commerce Security and Controls

Document the trends in computer and network security attacks. Describe the common security practices of businesses of all sizes. Understand the basic elements of EC security. Explain the basic types of network security attacks. Describe common mistakes that organizations make in managing security. Discuss some of the major technologies for securing EC communications. Detail some of the major technologies for securing EC networks components.

8. Electronic Payment Systems

Understand the shifts that are occurring with regards to noncash and online payments. Discuss the players and processes involved in using credit cards online. Discuss the different categories and potential uses of smart cards. Discuss various online alternatives to credit card payments and identify under what circumstances they are best used. Describe the processes and parties involved in e-checking. Describe payment methods in B2B EC, including payments for global trade. Discuss electronic bill and invoice presentment and payment. Understand the sales tax implications of e-payments.

9. Mobile Commerce and Pervasive Computing

Define mobile commerce and understand its relationship to e-commerce. Understand the mobile computing environment that supports m-commerce. Describe the four major types of wireless telecommunications networks. Discuss the value-added attributes and fundamental drivers of m-commerce. Discuss m-commerce applications in finance, advertising, and provision of content. Describe the application of m-commerce within organizations. Understand B2B and supply chain management applications of m-commerce. Describe consumer and personal applications of m-commerce. Understand the technologies and potential application of location-based m-commerce. Describe the major inhibitors and barriers of m-commerce. Discuss the key characteristics and current uses of pervasive computing

10. Legal and Ethical Issues in e-Commerce

Describe the differences between legal and ethical issues in EC. Understand the difficulties of protecting privacy in EC. Discuss issues of intellectual property rights in EC. Describe unsolicited ad problems and remedies. Understand the conflict between free speech and censorship on the Internet. Describe major legal issues in EC. Describe the types of fraud on the Internet and how to protect against them. Describe representative societal issues in EC. Describe the role and impact of virtual communities on EC. Describe the future of EC

11. Global, Social, and Other Issues in e-Commerce

Describe the strategic planning process. Describe the purpose and content of a business plan. Understand how e-commerce impacts the strategic planning process. Understand how EC applications are formulated, justified, and prioritized. Describe strategy implementation and assessment, including the use of metrics. Evaluate the issues involved in global EC. Analyze the impact of EC on small and medium-sized businesses

12. E Commerce in Pakistan and the Developing world (the opportunities and challenges

Describe the use of e-commerce in Pakistan. Describe various trends that are effecting the corporate culture in Pakistan. Describe how certain organizations have performed by adopting a certain EC model.