Key drivers of E-commerce

Technological factor

·         Telecommunications infrastructure

-Backbone infrastructure and architecture

-Industry players and competition

-Pricing

-Internet service providers

-Range of services available (e.g. ADSL, ISDN)

-Ownership (private or public sector)

·         Access to new technology developments

·         Bandwidth

·         Speed of development and implementation of new technology by industry sector

Political factors

•   Number and type of government incentives and programmes  to support the use and development of   new technology.
•  Legislation – number and type of supportive or restrictive laws and policiey that govern electronic data,contacts and financial transactions. For example, laws that recognise and enforce the validity of electronic documentation, contracts and transactions in a court of law; the validation of digital signatures; the legal usage of electronic security measures such as encryption.
• Public policies – whether government supports the growth of electronic transactions and processes. For example, filing tax returns to the In land Revenue electronically, the national education curriculum and training.

Social factors

•   Skills of workforce
•   Number of users on-line
•   Penetration rate of PCs of education; computer literacy and IT skills
•   Culture of technophilia – a willingness and ability to adopt new technology and the speed at which       technology achieves critical mass as in Japan.

Economic factors

•  Economic growth – GDP
• Average income
• Cost of technology (hardware and software)
• Cost of access to telecommunications infrastructure – pricing structures and rates
•  Commercial infrastructure – advancement of banking sector; payment systems 
• Innovative business models