Review of Related Literature and Studies
This portion of the paper presents foreign as well as local literature and studies, which the researcher considered related to the present study and which could provide a background to help him in the conduct of his research.
Local Literature
The “K” in k-economy stands for “Knowledge”. Knowledge economy is also referred to as the new economy, and also as the surge economy. The ”e” in E-commerce and E-business means “electronic”. Cyber market refers to all the e-stores or online markets found in the Internet. Product and services offered for sale in the k-economy usually find venues in the e-stores. Thus buyers engage in E-commerce and the manners and means of their transactions are embodied in the whole gamut of processes called E-Business.
As of 1995, the Philippines had around 500 thousand internet users. Out of the 79 million Philippines population, 375,000 users were online in 1999, and 683,000 users were expected to be online in 2003. A total of 4,670,942 telephone lines have been installed by various carriers including PLDT, Global, Smart, Islacom, Pitel , Digital and others. As of this year, approximately 210,000 units of GSM phones including WAP(Wireless Application Protocol) enabled were sold. WAP phones can be used for E-mail and Internet access.
In 1997, the Philippines Internet economy(selling of goods and services through the Internet earned some US$1.6 million. This amount increased to some US$383.7 million in year 2002.
E-commerce in the Philippines is mainly dominated by B2B transactions using proprietary protocols and private lines, such as EDI systems installed in huge retail chains like Shoemart and Makro; and large multinational corporations since Unilever and Nestle. AS of July 2001, the Philippines online trading market had 35 major buyers and more than 100 major suppliers traded with 6000 transactions volume for E-procurement and E-bidding costing of US$40 million worth of products