PCIJ WebAlert #7.2008

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W H A T ' S N E W @ www.pcij.org
28.February.2008


---------------[ i Report Feature )------

MAD OVER MONEY
Enhancing the 'Electronic' in E-commerce
by Alecks P. Pabico

THERE are a lot of things one can do with half a million pesos, among
them giving (like Deputy Executive Secretary Manuel Gaite says he did
earlier this month) the amount to a near-stranger who texted that he
was running out of funds in a foreign land. One can also invest it in
an online business, which may be the better move, and not only because
then there would be little chance of one ending up getting grilled in
the Senate or becoming the subject of text jokes.

According to e-commerce insiders and observers, 2008 may yet become
the turnaround year for the Philippine online economy, which had been
in the doldrums for far too long. As the closing piece in i Report's
Mad Over Money series explains, this is because of a predicted
dramatic rise in Internet use, as well as the recent entry of PayPal,
the global leader in online payment solutions, into the country.

For sure, the savvy and creative Pinoys did come up with alternative
modes of payment while awaiting the arrival of PayPal to simplify e-
transactions. But few small and medium enterprises (SMEs) dared to dip
their toes in the cyberbusiness waters in the meantime, which meant
local e-commerce became dominated by business giants.

That's still the case today, but experts insist this is the ideal time
for SMEs to try it out online. Readers would do well to listen to
their arguments, as well as to consider the prospects and possible
pitfalls of Pinoy e-commerce.

Read on at http://pcij.org
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