[8794] in Commercialization & Privatization of the Internet
Re: VERY serious $ Business now done on Internet
daemon@ATHENA.MIT.EDU (David Farber)
Sun Dec 5 07:42:18 1993
Date: Sun, 5 Dec 1993 07:41:33 -0500
To: cook@path.net (Gordon Cook)
From: farber@central.cis.upenn.edu (David Farber)
Cc: com-priv@psi.com
I will share with you and com-priv the first paragraphs of a
multi-disiplinary activity we are planning to start at Penn shortly. If
anyone wants to see the rest, send me mail. And finally, Gordon, while many
were worrying about the micro-issues, I and others have been predicting the
commercialization of the network and the creation of not just an NII but a
III for many many moons.
Dave
________________
Electronic Commerce in Cyberspace - Sept 1993
As the National Information Infrastructures -- the NIIs become more a part
of the everyday business of the nation, it will become more and more
necessary for commerce to take place among the users of the infrastructure.
We can expect in a very short period an electronic marketplace where goods
of all types -- merchandise, information, software etc. are being bought
and sold.
Historically there has always been a need to create a way of paying for
such goods in order to motivate the supply side of the marketplace.
Currently our primitive marketplaces have no very effective mechanisms for
paying for goods.
This creates an interesting and exciting opportunity to examine just what
is needed to supply a mechanism for the exchange of electronic currency and
how such a mechanism can exist in a national and international arena.
Also as the National Information Infrastructures being proposed by each of
the major economic blocks (Japan-Asia, CEC-Eastern Europe and the
USA/Nafta) develop, it will become obvious that many of their major users
-- business, R&D and academia need the environment extended to allow a more
international point of view -- the International Information Infrastructure
-- the III. The issues raised by the potential existence of an
international electronic marketplace (IEM) are not limited to just how to
pay for things. There is the need to have the equivalent of credit cards,
checks and paper money with it various shades of traceability and privacy.
There is the need for escrow mechanisms and international exchange etc.
.....
