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To: yard_man who wrote (10072)	4/15/1998 2:56:00 PM
From: LoLoLoLita	Respond to of 27307

from excite.com: Wired Technology News Updated 12:25 PM ET April 15, 1998 Government report sees e-commerce becoming a force By Pete Danko SAN FRANCISCO (Wired) - A US government attempt to gauge the whirlwind of change brought by new technology places electronic commerce at the center of future economic growth, but says it resides there precariously and demands "a new paradigm for government and private sector responsibilities." "The Emerging Digital Economy, "a 259-page opus released this morning by the Commerce Department, acknowledges the difficulty of measuring systematically how the dazzling advances and investments in information technology have made the economy stronger, but by pointing to specific developments paints a bright picture of new efficiencies realized and new markets created. It sees business-to-business electronic commerce resulting in lower purchasing costs, citing General Electric's online procurement system; quicker inventory turnover, pointing to IBM's Advanced Planning System; faster product development cycles (the entire US automaking industry); and improved customer service (Cisco). It sees consumer benefits, with the emergence of new ways to buy airline tickets, automobiles, and books-ways that are easier, faster, and often cheaper than traditional means. And it sees high-paying IT jobs replacing lower-paying positions. But like any "major societal transformation," this one makes no sure promises, the report says: The Industrial Revolution didn't, and neither shall the digital revolution. The digital economy could founder, the authors suggest, if government and business don't together carefully manage the lightning-fast changes taking place. As the Clinton White House has been saying since last summer, "Creating the optimal conditions for the new digital economy to flourish requires a new, much less restrictive approach to the setting of the rules." That means government must encourage competition, avoid taxing the Net to death, and when it does need to enforce regulation, do so-somehow-"non-bureaucratically." Similarly, businesses must be ready to compete, and must answer consumer concerns about privacy and Internet crime. And both sectors-and workers themselves-must be primed to deal with an economy in which jobs both arise and are filled at the blink of an eye. "If we do not have a sufficient number of well-educated and trained people to fill these new jobs, then the good news can turn to bad," the report says. One issue the report steered almost entirely clear of-despite its obvious implications-was encryption. On that matter, the administration's talk of unfettered ecommerce crashes head-on into some of the most restrictive crypto policies on the globe. Says the report: "Many... await a resolution of current export limitations on encryption software before they plan to increase their Internet business." The report was produced by the Commerce Department's Secretariat on Electronic Commerce, under the project leadership of Lynn Margherio. At this writing it could not yet be found on the Commerce Department Web site. (Reuters/Wired)