London, May 4: Business enterprises in the country will soon be in a position to engage in electronic commerce with 54 countries via a free subscription. This has been made possible with the help of the new interactive web site set up by the Commonwealth Secretariat's Export and Industrial Development Division (EIDD). The web site, costing nearly Pound 1 million, is expected to be fully operational by the end of the year.As a first step to introduce the new network in the country, EIDD has organised a three-day workshop in Bangalore starting May 12 for potential subscribers. The new site, called the Commonwealth Business Network (Combinet), is expected to facilitate businesses through electronic information, interaction, negotiation and conclusion of a business deal through Cyberspace.
The network, in effect, is to be an electronic marketplace accessible through the Internet, in which investors in any country could easily search projects worthy of closer commercial or public-funding attention. It wouldalso help the Commonwealth members, particularly the small and developing countries, to readily and cheaply test the economic appeal of their businesses and policies.
Besides specific projects, the site which will be updated by each country itself, will outline background data on issues like tax and customs regime, local markets, trade-promotion practices, investment guidelines, infrastructure and local labour skills. The same database may also reveal potential synergies by way of combining two or more projects in a fashion that would bring them to a size large enough to fit international investment portfolios.
EIDD chief programme officer BJR Rao said the Combinet is a result of the five main recommendations made by Commonwealth members at the Edinburgh Summit in October 1997. The Combinet is a public network which can be accessed by all individuals who have a personal computer (PC), a dial-up modem and access to Internet service providers. However, for those who do not have the pre-requisite hardware,Combinet would still serve as an electronic marketplace to business, which are members of participating chambers of commerce and industry associations.
EIDD will keep the site free of charge, at least for the next two years. This is part of its development objective to link up as many people as possible. However, plans are afoot to make it a commercially viable site by generating advertising revenue as soon as the site's worth is established. The Commonwealth secretariat is also toying with the idea of sharing the revenues with member business associations, who could become Combinet shareholders.
The Bangalore workshop will focus on providing the related knowledge and skills to subscribers which include: obtain up-to-date market intelligence, identify sources of key contacts and opportunities and interaction with other international business organisations like the G-77 Trade Information Network and the International Bureau of Chamber of Commerce. The idea is to go beyond traditional channels likediplomacy to attract investors through new channels which permit ready access to information.
The network has been organised to follow the Business Provess Steps to enable the following stages of businesses:
Information and access to Commonwealth chambers and manufacturing associations to obtain details on market opportunities E-mail Negotiate product attributes and discuss one to one or one to many relationship Conclusion of a business deal and agreeing to a common ground for businessThe network can also facilitate the legal binding of a deal. Combinet plans to have a web chat and a video conference facility added to it very soon.As a trial measure, EIDD is also launching an electronic business clinic to help people solve trade-, investment- and manufacturing-related problems.
EIDD has also worked out a road map for guiding first-time users in terms of specific business opportunities in certain countries.
The Combinet launch in India comes close to the publishing of anew study, `Electronic commerce and the role of the WTO', authored by a group of economists from the WTO secretariat.
The study says that there are tremendous opportunities thrown up by electronic commerce. However, it adds that much needs to be done by way of improving the access of necessary infrastructure and user skills, if these opportunities are to be realised.
The study was written as a means to provide background information for the 132 WTO members, who are now engaged in the process of developing policy responses to this new form of commerce.
Electronic commerce is expected to have a value of over $300 billion by the turn of the century.
The launch of Combinet in India, in that context, is expected to help domestic businessmen tap new opportunities. However, just how many people would actually use the network to conclude business deals is yet to be seen.
Copyright © 1998 Indian Express Newspapers (Bombay) Ltd.
