Connecting many computer networks and using common addressing system, the Internet has been growing rapidly since its creation in 1983. By the mid-1990s the Internet linked millions of computers throughout the world and became the most important commercial and popular means of communication. The original uses of the Internet were electronic mail, file transfer and remote computer access. Nowadays the World Wide Web enables users easily to browse websites in search of any type of information.
The first electronic transactions are supposed to have been handled in the 1950s due to telex and teletype. In the following decades various industries continued to work on the electronic data interchange. It took quite a time to create a simple and independent of any particular machine standard. Since the mid-1990s electronic commerce has become one of the most rapidly growing retail sectors involving the use of computer networks for maintaining business relationships and selling information, services and commodities.
A large part of e-commerce was transferred to the Internet after the appearance of first graphical "browser" in 1993. Since then the number of companies and individuals using "on-line" has greatly increased. In some fields new Internet retailers such as the Amazon bookseller company seem to have grown up overnight and begun successfully competing with traditional retailers. Most of recently established companies tend to include the electronic commerce in their business as well. For example, the Intel Corporation sold almost half of its chips in the annual computer sales directly through its Web site in 1999 and moved all of its sales to the Web by the end of 2000.
The further development of secure electronic transfer of sensitive information, such as credit card numbers and electronic funds transfer orders, encouraged the growth of electronic commerce. Nowadays not only various companies but individuals as well encrypt their e-mail correspondence.
Among other innovations that have contributed to the growth of
e-commerce are electronic directories and search engines for finding information on the Web; software agents that act autonomously to allocate goods and services; and special identifying services over the Internet. These intermediary services facilitate the sale of goods (actually delivering the goods in the case of information), the provision of services such as banking, ticket reservations, and stock market transactions, and even the delivery of remote education and entertainment. Specialists consider electronic auction sales and markets to be other rapidly developing parts of e-commerce. The former offer a large variety of goods from computers and electronics to books, recordings, cars and real estate, while the latter allow a buyer to choose offers from many sellers. It is interesting that from its establishing in 1995, the world's largest on-line open auction site, eBay, grew to more than 5 million members by 1999.
Businesses often develop private intranets for sharing information and collaborating within the company. These networks are usually isolated from the surrounding Internet by special security systems. Businesses also often rely on extranets which arc extensions of a company's intranet. Such extranets allow internal network to be accessible to collaborating businesses.
One should mention some more important benefits of e-commerce. Due to its development the role of geographic distance in forming business relationships is being reduced. If you were interested in the beginning of a retail business, it would be relatively inexpensive to start a retail Web site. Some traditional businesses are being replaced by their electronic equivalents or are being made completely useless.
For example, making it possible to reserve tickets over the Internet, airlines have greatly decreased the role of traditional agencies. Prices of commodity products are generally lower on the Web and it is easy to find there necessary commodities at acceptable prices. A new form of collaboration known as a virtual company is flourishing now. This type of company is actually a network of firms, where each unit performs some of the processes needed to manufacture a product or deliver a service.
Ex. 1 Memorize the words.
advertise рекламировать
allocate распределять, ассигновать
billing address адрес для выставления счёта
check out подтверждать правильность (выставленного счёта)
confirm подтверждать, одобрять
directory справочник, указатель, каталог
due to благодаря, вследствие, из-за
encrypt шифровать, кодировать
extension расширение (услуг; файла); удлинитель
expire заканчиваться, истекать (о сроке, годности)
facilitate облегчать, содействовать
gateway маршрутизатор, шлюз (устройство для объединения инф. сетей, использующих различные протоколы,)
link звено, связь; соединять
log in/ out входить в систему; выходить из системы
refer (to) обращаться, отсылать (к к-л); ссылаться (на ч-л)
rely полагаться, доверять
restrict ограничивать
reservation резервирование, бронирование
search engine поисковая система, поисковик
sign up подписаться (о согласии); записаться (о членстве )
shipping address адрес (для) доставки, отправки
secure безопасный, надёжный; охранять
security token "маркерное кольцо" ЛВС (средство идентификации, использующее передачу маркера как символа права доступа к сети)
surround окружать
ticket билет; объявление; штраф за нарушение правил
track путь, след; отслеживать
verify проверять, удостоверять, подтверждать
Ex.2 Define parts of speech.
commercial, rapidly, relationship, browser, sensitive, innovation, entertainment, surrounding, accessible, needed, autonomous.
Ex. 3 Find pairs of synonyms in A and B.
A: important, original, remote, independent, individuals, provision,
annual, secure, collaborate, due to;
B: distant, safe, significant, autonomous, first, delivery, people, yearly,
because of, work together.
Ex. 4 Find pairs of antonyms in A and B.
A: common, commercial, facilitate, develop, private, retail, former;
B: degrade, wholesale, individual, non-profit, latter, complicate, public.
Ex. 5 Match up A and B.
1. Having been created in 1983,
2. The introduction of the World Wide Web
3. E-commerce is said to involve
4. The number of people using "on-line"
5. Systems for encrypting information
6. Advertising their goods or services,
7. It is important that electronic auction
8. To be isolated from the surrounding networks collaborating
companies elaborate upon
9. To establish a virtual company
10. Most of traditional retail agencies
a. one should connect a number of firms through the Internet.
b. many companies often refer to their own Web sites.
c. considerably promoted the development of e-commerce.
d. are likely to be replaced by their electronic equivalents.
e. the Internet system connects millions of computer users now.
f. special security extranets to be used for information exchange.
g. facilitate the sale and the delivery of goods to consumers.
h. wide computer networks used for diverse economic activities.
i. will support the growth of banking transactions through the Internet.
j. either for business purposes or education is constantly growing.
Ex. 6 Answer the following questions.
1. What were the original uses of the Internet?
2. Why has the Internet spread so widely all over the world?
3. How can individuals and businesses use the Internet?
4. What does electronic commerce include?
5. When did e-commerce appear?
6. What promoted the development of e-commerce?
7. What are the benefits of e-commerce in contrast to retail system?
8. What are intranets and extranets used for?
Ex. 7 Comment on the following.
a) What do you know about the WWW? b) What goods are sold in virtual shops? c) What e-stores do you know? d) Do you use on-line shopping?