Scope of e-commerce

Scope of E-Commerce to be Extended

Thursday, 12 October 2000 00:00

Source: New Straits Times (page 10)

Kuala Lumpur, Wed - The Department of Survey and Mapping Malaysia will extend the scope of its electronic commerce to include the use of e-wallets and credit cards, said Land and Co-operative Development Minister Tan Sri Kasitah Gaddam today.

To be launched by Prime Minister Datuk Seri Dr Mahathir Mohamad on Oct 24, the move would allow licensed surveyors and land developers to purchase the department's survey data more conveniently.

Products such as digital cadastral survey data and certified plan images could be speedily provided to those involved in planning and implementing land development projects, Kasitah told reporters.

An exhibition will be held on other information technology projects by the Ministry's agencies.

Visitors will be able to witness the intricacies of marking and measuring the international borders of Malaysia with neighbours Thailand and Indonesia, he added.

Besides displaying a CD-ROM version of an interactive map, the exhibition will also feature, the technology used for accurate global positioning, computerised land registration and allocation of land to children of a deceased Muslim.

*This news article is mainly about government is trying to improve the development of e-commerce or online transactions in Malaysia especially in selling and purchasing land development projects.

 

***

Generally, e-commerce transactions covers six areas which is advertising, education, finance, professional fields, retail and tourism. These six areas shows positive growth in this online transactions. According to studies conducted, in 1998 total advertising revenue through the Internet has reached up to U.S. $ 1.3 billion and total assets managed by brokers traded in line had reached up to U.S. $ 420 billion.

In addition, e-commerce is also used in education system. Total amount on distance students has increased from 120 thousand students in 1997 to 710 thousand in 1998 and this number is expected to increase to 2.2 million students by the year 2000.

Moreover, this online transactions were also used in professional fields such as in medical treatment such as in the use of telemedicine. Telemedicine had change a new dimension on modern medicine. With the help of telemedicine, surgery can be done from far away. Medical experts who are in other places can give instructions for an operation or surgery to be done.

The use of telemedicine has increased 30 percent worldwide and more than 3 million people have received benefits from it since 1998. In Malaysia, two hospitals had been using the non-paper method, as all information regarding patients and their disease had been recorded in computer systems. It is easier for delivering any specimens through the net. With that, human life expectancy and also increased the quality of life. Therefore, e-commerce can be done successfully in this medical arena especially in telemedicine.

In tourism, the activity in selling and buying tickets through the Internet had increased from US $ 100 million in 1997 to US 3.1 billion in the year of 2002.