ABSTRACT
According to Reference 1, commercial transactions can be divided into three phases. The first phase is the
information phase
in which the parties to a transaction, typically buyer and seller, look for information to find the product or service that best suits their needs. The second phase is the
negotiation phase,
in which the parties to a transaction negotiate the transaction terms. The negotiation phase might be absent from some transactions, such as net price sales. The third phase is the
execution phase,
in which payments are made and products are delivered. In e-commerce transactions, these phases can be fully, partially, or not at all executed electronically. The different phases can be more or less involved depending on the circumstances. For instance, in business-to-business (B2B) transactions, the negotiations phase can be quite involved, requiring face-to-face meetings between the participants.
