Global Business - E-Commerce in Canada

BUTM312 Assignment 01

Global Business - E-Commerce in Canada

The 21st century is a cyber-economy and research proves that Internet, Information Technology and Communications (ICT) are essential to the overall growth of the economy and increases in productivity, particularly in Canada. Technological experts have recognized Canada as the leading nation in adopting internet and online technologies, since 1999.

According to a recent research, Canadians leads in terms of Internet adoption by and the nation is placed amongst the list of prominent countries, such as South Korea, United States and Japan. This is clearly reflected in the research conducted by Ipsos, which suggests that over 71% of Canadians accessed the Internet in 2003, against 70% of South Koreans, 65% of Japanese, and 68% of Americans.

Despite an exponential beginning, international reports indicate that Canada has lost ground in comparison to other countries. This is partly depicted in the report issues by Economist Intelligence Unit, where it was ranked fourth in the year 2001; however, slipped to ninth position in 2002, and eleventh during the year 2004. Another reason for the dismal performance is the fact that Canadians have failed to take full advantage of the potential of e-commerce capabilities. It is interesting to note that despite the presence and deployment of advanced infrastructure network and internet infrastructure; internet access has not resulted in an increase of e-commerce in Canada.

Sales made ??through e-commerce continue to represent a smaller part of consumer spending and Canadians continue to worry about privacy and online security. A high number of SMEs cite factors such as high costs, lack of competent staff, and insecurity as major barriers in adopting e-business, and consequently do not engage in electronic commerce (E-commerce 2008).

A comprehensive analysis of the electronic commerce industry in Canada suggests that the industry is experiencing phenomenal ...