How Alibaba Changes the Marketplace?

(3:44)
ECOM6013 Source: CNBC (2017)
E-Commerce Technologies (2024-25)

TOPIC 1

Introduction to
E-Commerce Technology

Paul Cheung
[email protected]

1
2

How Technology had Changed the World (1) How Technology had Changed the World (2)
3 years ago (2021)
42 years ago (1981) 25 years go (1999)
51 years ago (1973)

Note: Amazon revenue is similar to GDP of

Thailand and Norway in 2021 (UN data), 4% of
US GDP. It is 3.7x GM and 8x IBM revenue in
the same year

3 4
 How Technology had Changed the World (3) Before we start ...
Top 10 listed Internet companies (17 Aug 2024)

知之為知之，不知為不知，是知也。 - 孔⼦
Knowing what you know, and knowing what you don’t know,
is true knowledge! - Confuscius (551-479 BC)

“… knowing what you don’t know is more important than

knowing what you know….” - PC

Source: https://companiesmarketcap.com/gbp/internet/largest-internet-companies-by-revenue/ 5 6

Lectures, Case Studies, Insights,

study group and forum
• Are you willing to put the
required effort?
15 minutes break approximately • Substantial reading
halfway through the lecture
• Study is like many other
things in life (e.g.
Class How to get relationships) – how
Ask questions at
the most
Raise questions in
much you get depends on
Format
class or send email
any time : after class
from the how much you put in!!!

We shall use the Forum for offline discussion course • Form study group and
learn together
(offline means outside class time) – Leo will be
the person who will work with you on this.
• Develop the “being mode” in
learning, not just the “having
We can be reached
Paul Cheung -
[email protected]
mode” (ref: ”To have or to be”
by email: Leo Lim - by Erich Fromm)
[email protected]

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 If possible, attend class prepared!!
Prepare • There will be a great deal of reading, please
read!
• Textbook
• Questions/discussion/input are encouraged
• E-commerce 2023-24: business.
technology. society, 18th Global Edition,
What is Kenneth C. Laudon & Carol Guercio
Traver, Pearson, 2023.
expected of Attend class on time – we will start Learning • Not all chapters and not necessarily in
Attend promptly
the • You are responsible for any missed content Materials
order. we cover some topics outside
of the textbook

students • You are expected to use attendance APP • Will serve as a general reference
(terms, concepts, etc.)
(YOU!) • Communications on Moodle

Bring your experience with you on: • Online references

Bring • E-Commerce Web sites (HK & Mainland) • Student/instructor’s postings

• E-payment systems
• Any other application and use of Internet

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Assessment All Written Assignment Policy

All written assignments are

Spelling and grammar checked with TurnItIn to
check detect plagiarism
You are NOT allowed to do
assignment using ChatGPT
or similar tools
Continuous assessment (Total: 70%) Written examination (30%)

Forum participation on 4 topics (30%) 2 hours – Dec 2024 This is critical to any
MAKE SURE that you cite
Group mini-project (40%) Open book, open notes, but NO submission as we need to
all references that are
know what are your work
phone, tablet or computer quoted directly! This
and what are other
includes figures, tables,
people’s work that you
illustrations, etc.
refer to.

11 12
Assignment #1 : X (Twitter) vs Wechat Group Mini Group Project

• Read the case study – “Weathering the Storm: Twitter’s Uncertain • General theme must be related to E-Commerce and technology (you can
Future” on (p.129-132) of the textbook choose the topic, but must cover technology, social/business impact etc)
• A single, comprehensive, research paper fitting of graduate level study
• Read articles on recent news about the challenges the companies
• Well-cited
are facing (locally and internationally)
• With original content, no ChatGPT or equivalent!
• Discuss with classmates (on Moodle as you wish) to learn the • Suggestion (not requirement) – discuss topic with Prof. and TA
challenges faced by both companies. • See example on Moodle for desired structure and format
• No requirement on word or page count
• Write a brief paper (individually) on the following topic: • Will be checked for plagiarism and follow HKU policy using AI for
“Compare the business models of Twitter and WeChat, and assignment
discuss the challenges they should address to achieve a brighter • May be co-authored by no more than 4 persons unless given permission
future.” (with “peer evaluation”, more details later).
13 14
PAUSE for questions

Upon completion you should be

Course Objectives
able to :
• Understand the development of E-Commerce
• To introduce existing and emerging key technologies that
shape the development and evolution of E-Commerce • How technology created new business models
• How new business models drive the development of new
• To provide you with a framework for future learning in E-
technologies
Commerce and associated topics (e.g., security, blockchain,
AI and machine learning etc) • Gain a broad understanding of the enabling technologies that
• To encourage you to become safe, responsible and make E-Commerce a reality – assist you choose electives
productive citizens in an E-commerce-centric world • Understand the security and reliability requirements of E-
• To stimulate you in critical thinking and research skills, and Commerce and the technologies to meet these requirements
be more innovative and entrepreneurial to face the uncertain • Have a broad understanding of the economic opportunities that
future of the world
E-Commerce can create and its social impact
• There will be Peer Evaluation on contribution and possibly
• Understand the relationship between emerging technologies
oral examination to confirm your contribution
15 and new business models. 16
Lecture Plan Lecture Plan

Topic 3 E-Commerce Presence, Web Design, Implementation and Testing

Topic 1 Introduction to E-Commerce Technology • The Web site Development Life Cycle
• General introduction to E-Commerce and its enabling technology • E-Commerce Web site physical design and analysis
• E-Commerce implementation process
• Why it is important to study E-Commerce
• Tools and processes for E-Commerce Web site tuning and testing
• Establishing a working definition of E-Commerce
[Related Module: ICOM6034 Website Engineering]
• Basic E-Commerce architecture
Topic 2 Internet and E-Commerce Infrastructure Topic 4 Internet and E-Commerce Security
• Basic network protocols and infrastructure of the Internet • Introduction to E-Commerce security
• The Web and its architecture and languages • Network security models and planning
• Introduction to encryption technologies & PKI
• Applications on the Internet and WWW
• Secure transactions in E-Commerce
[Related Modules: ICOM6012 Internet Infrastructure Technologies]
[Related Module: ICOM6045 Fundamentals of E-Commerce Security]
17 18

Lecture Plan Lecture Plan

Topic 5 Introduction to Mobile Technology and M-Commerce Topic 7 Blockchain, Cryptocurrency and NFT
• Introduction to Mobile Technology and Internet • Blockchain principles, distributed ledgers and applications
• Mobile vs Web Presence • Cryptocurrency and limitations
• Bitcoin, Ethereum and their impact
• Location Based Technologies • Non-Fungible Token (NFT)
• SPACE-X and related systems • Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC)
[Related Module: ECOM7124 Mobile and IoT computing services and [Related Module: ECOM6023 E-Financial Services, FITE7409 Blockchain &
applications] Cryptocurrency)

Topic 8 A.I. & Machine Learning

Topic 6 Electronic Payment Systems
• Introduction to AI and societal impacts
• Different forms of electronic payment
• Machine Learning and Deep Learning
• Challenges in Payment Security
• Generative AI, Large Language Models (LLM) and ChatGPT
• Future of Electronic Payment and Impact in society
[Related Modules: ECOM7126 Machine Learning for Business`]
[Related Module: ECOM6016 Electronic Payment Systems] 19 20
 Alibaba Singles Day 2023 (SCMP) (3 min)
Lecture Plan

Topic 9 Other new technology and application of E-Commerce Technology in

business
• Internet of Things (I.O.T.), Virtual Reality, Metaverse and other technologies
• Example of application of technology that transfer a real and successful local
business
[Related Modules: ECOM7123 Building Smart Cities]

Session 10 E-Commerce Trends, Emerging Technology and Course Review

• Technology Hype Cycle and Emerging Technology
• E-Commerce trends and a peek into the future
• Course Review
Break for questions 21 22

§ Alibaba GMV of RMB 540B (US$84.5B) from 1 – 11 Nov, 2021 (11 days) (was RMB$498B or
US$74B in 2020)
Three giants dominated 11/11 Day in 2023
§ JD Sales in 2021 Singles Day – RMB 349B (US$54.6B) (Sum of 2 giants was ~US$140B)

§ U$56B sales by 30 minutes into 11 Nov 2020

Share of Gross Merchandize Volume
§ Over 3 billion packages delivered (~2 per person in China!)
(GMV) on Singles Day 2023

Estimated statistics of Singles Day

2022
• Sales: US$128B-151B (2.9%-13.7%
YoY)
• Daily average parcels
handled/day: 389 millions
• Beauty products top (US$4.7)
• Daily active users:
Pingduoduo: 576 m
Taobao: 527 m
JD.com: 192 m

Source: “109 Singles’ Day Statistics

Every Retailer Should Know 2023” ,
Queue-it.com (12 sep 2023)
Source: Statista
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E-Commerce and Data Science Shopify Commerce Trend 2023 Report (1:05)

— E-Commerce is largely an exercise in understanding

the clients – their capabilities, desires, etc.
o Matching clients with technologies and goals
o Exploring scalability – what does this mean?
o Challenges of new markets
— Commerce Trends 2023 Report - (Shopify)
https://www.shopify.com/plus/commerce-
trends?itcat=partner_blog&itterm=commerce_trends_2023

[Note: the entire report ”Commerce Trends 2023 report” is a 65 pages report by
Shopify. It contains 5 parts: (1) Supply Chain; (2) Money; (3) Marketing; (4) e-
Commerce; and (5) Retail. The report is made available in Moodle for your ease
of reference.]

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Shopify Commerce Trends 2023 Report (1) Shopify Commerce Trends 2023 Report (2)

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10 Shopify and Ecommerce Trends in 2024
(by StoreLab.app)
What is E-Commerce (vs E-Business)?
“10 Shopify and Ecommerce Trends to Expect in 2024”
https://www.storelab.app/blog/10-shopify-and-ecommerce-trends-to-expect-in- • Usually, use of Internet, Web or mobile APPs to
2024 transact business – or simply any networked
1. Same-day delivery commerce activity
2. Voice-enabled search • More formally:
3. Increased security measures • Digitally enabled commercial transactions between and
4. AI customer support, Chatbots, and Machine Learning among organizations and individuals

5. Sustainability initiatives • E-Business:

6. Social Commerce • Digital enablement of transactions and processes within a
7. 360 product videos firm, involving information systems under firm’s control

8. Mobile optimization • Does not include commercial transactions involving an

exchange of value across organizational boundaries
9. AR & VR experiences
10.Subscription and Loyalty services 29 30

Major Trends in E-commerce (1) Major Trends in E-commerce (2)

• Business trends include: • Technology trends include:

– Retail e-commerce and m-commerce settle back to – Mobile platforms
normal growth rates (around 10%) after Covid-19 – Cloud computing
pandemic
– Internet of Things
– Mobile app ecosystem: almost 250 million U.S.
– Big data
adults use smartphone apps (1 billion in China)
– Artificial intelligence technologies
– E-commerce GMV (Gross Merchandize Value) was
RMB 42 trillion or US$6 trillion in 2022 in China – Blockchain
(US$811B in US) – Web3
– B2B e-commerce revenues expected to reach about – Metaverse
RMB 31.4 trillion in 2022 – AI applications
(Source: Statista)
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Major Trends in E-commerce (3)
Why study E-Commerce?
• Societal trends include:
• E-Commerce technology is different, more powerful than previous
– User-generated content technologies
– Commercial and governmental invasion of privacy • E-Commerce bringing fundamental changes to commerce
– Concerns about increasing market dominance of • “by 2020 retail guys are going to go out of business and e-
Amazon, Google, Meta (Big Tech) in US; Alibaba, commerce will become the place everyone buys” (Marc
Andreessen, co-author of Mosaic)
JD, Tencent, Meitun, Baidu in China
• Traditional commerce:
– Online security issues
• Passive consumer
• Sales-force driven
• Fixed prices
• Information asymmetry

33 34

Unique (and required) features of current Types of E-Commerce (1/2)

E-Commerce technology Classified by market relationship

1. Ubiquity
2. Global reach
3. Universal standards
4. Information richness
5. Interactivity
6. Information density
7. Personalization/customization
8. Social technology
35 36
 Source: CNBC on Speech by Jack Ma at
WEF Jan 2017

Jack Ma on Amazon vs Alibaba (3:53)

Types of E-Commerce (2/2)
• Classified by technology used
• Business-to-Consumer (B2C)
• Business-to-Business (B2B)
• Consumer-to-Consumer (C2C)
• Peer-to-Peer (P2P)
• Mobile commerce (M-commerce) – most significant example is
WeChat - one phone all done!
• Online-to-offline (O2O)
• Direct-to-Customers (D2C) – Shopify
• Social Commerce (KoL)
• Local e-Commerce (e.g. craiglist)
• “Online Intelligent Services” (e.g OpenAi, Google, Microsoft,
Mid-Journey etc, many similar services in China)
37 38

Potential limitations on the growth of B2C

B2C and B2B E-Commerce Potentials
E-Commerce

• Expensive technology
• Sophisticated skill set
• Persistent cultural attraction of physical markets
and traditional shopping experiences
• Persistent global inequality limiting access to
telephones and computers – “digital divide”
• Saturation and ceiling effects
• De-Globalization, trade war and geo-political
conflicts

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 Understanding E-commerce: The approach used in the textbook
Predictions/Questions/Challenges for the future
• Technology:
Development and mastery of digital computing and communications
• Technology will propagate through all commercial activity technology
- main focus of this course
• Prices will rise to cover the real cost of doing business
• Business:
• E-Commerce margins and profits will rise to levels more typical New technologies present businesses with new ways of organizing
of all retailers production and transacting business
- important for your career and Group Project
• Cast of players will change
• Society:
• Traditional Fortune 500 companies will play dominant role
Intellectual property, individual privacy, public welfare policy
• New startup ventures will emerge with new products, services - important for being a person and part of the society
• Number of successful pure online stores will remain smaller
than integrated offline/online stores
• Growth of regulatory activity worldwide
• Influence of cost of energy
• Geo-political conflicts and risk of “bipolar” Internet world 41

Major Trends in E-commerce Academic disciplines concerned with E-Commerce

• Technology trends include:

• Mobile platform has made mobile e-commerce reality and • Technical approach • Behavioral approach
affordable smartphones plus 5G will make more impact. • Computer science • Information systems
• AI applications will continue to transform how we work, live • Management science • Economics
and play! • Information systems • Marketing
• Electrical & Electronic • Management
• Business trends include: Engineering • Finance/accounting
• All forms of e-commerce show very strong growth and
• Sociology
Covid-19 amplifies this.
• Psychology
• Societal trends include:
• Increased online social interaction and sharing, but we
begin to see the negative impacts of social media.

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 Revisit the Social Impact of Internet
Facebook, Covid and Misinformation - Lesson from the Arab Spring by Wael Ghonim
The Peril of Social Media

Source: newsbreak.com
(19 Aug 2020)

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https://secure.avaaz.org/campaign/en/facebook_threat_health/