ABSTRACT

In an industry well known for exaggeration and hype, the phenomenal ascent of electronic commerce (E-commerce) to the forefront of industry attention has set a new standard for user interest and business opportunities. Driven by the ubiquity of the World Web Wide, the global Internet, and the availability of universal browser interfaces, the growth and importance of E-commerce to the digital business of the new millennium cannot be over-hyped or exaggerated. Consider the following E-commerce forecasts:

• The size of the U.S. on-line population is expected to grow to over 100 million in 2001 from under 20 million in 1996.