Legal

The legal ramification of internet usage become more strictly from years to years. Due to the efforts by the Internet law enforcer, more and more of the Internet spammers and hackers has been arrested. The most obvious example is the arrest of “Spam King”, Robert Soloway. There are also other new laws for cyber café. In the point of view of the users, the new rule has because more inconvenience to the customers and also limited the potential growth of cyber café. In other countries such as China and US, they are more concentrate working on new law to minimize the illegal downloads of video, music, and also computer software.

Malaysia’s government has launched a lot of large operation to seize those illegal companies that provided the sources of downloadable software. As the government tried to eliminating the sources for piracy, there are many people that still ignoring their efforts especially the public. The new rule for cyber café has restricted a lot of activities including gaming activities. The main reasons of people went to cyber café is because of the lagging of internet service at home and also gaming with the other people. Since government try to protect the internet usage, this has cause more problem to users than benefit the others. The legal action that enforced to the home-based internet usage such as cutting of the internet connection is not a wise move to more internet secure situation. Even some of the hackers can hack into the others personal computer to perform illegal actions such as illegal downloads and stealing identities. Common users do not have knowledge to prevent being hacked. The government should point their fingers on those hackers but not innocent users. They should concentrate on how to track and punish the hackers.

Although there are a lot of critiques pointed to the government internet enforcers, but they are still doing the right action to arrest and jailed those spammers before they cause more damages. The illegal internet investment schemes also have been cracked down.

Review a local e-commerce site

PbeBank.com
http://www.pbebank.com/

On-line banking is a service provided by many banks, thrifts, and credit unions that allows you to conduct banking transactions over the Internet using a personal computer, mobile telephone, or handheld computer (such as a "personal digital assistant").

Nowaday E-banking is one of the convienice website for their customers. On-line banking can help you manage savings and checking accounts, apply for loans, or pay bills quickly and easily. To enjoy the full benefits of on-line banking, you should understand all that on-line banking can offer, consider some questions to ask before signing up, and know how to get help if you need it.

Register for PBeBank.com Internet Banking can enjoy the following benefits for today:
~Realtime Account Inquiry (Balance Inquiry , Transaction History, Statement Request)
~Payment History
~Funds Transfers and Payments
~Online Share Trading (Buy/Sell shares, Share Portfolio and Account Balances)
~Other Services (Cheque Book Request, Cheque Status Inquiry)

Comment on pbebank website:
The design of the website is tidy and the colour is very comfortable. I prefer this(pbe) website because all the icon and linking is well organize and is esay for users to understand and used.

Talking about the security, pbe is more secure compare to others becuase the duration to enable the webside relog is shorter then others. Sometime people will say this will cause a problem, but for my oppinion this is more secure. In the other hand, the secure system will always remind customers to update the web password from time to time to protect their privacy.

Prevention of E-auction fraud

According to Internet Fraud Watch, of all e-commerce activities conducted over the Internet, fraud is most serious in e-auctions. E-auction fraud accounted for 70 percent of the e-commerce fraud that occurred in 2001 (down from 87 percent in 1999). The average auction loss is $518 per complaint, and roughly $6.1 million was lost due to fraudulent activity in 2001.The largest Internet auctioneer, eBay, has introduced several measures in an effort to reduce fraud. Some are free, some are not. The company has succeeded in its goal: less than one-tenth of 1 percent of the transactions at eBay were fraudulent in 2001 (Konrad 2002). The following are some of eBay’s antifraud measures:

>>User identity verification
eBay uses the services of Equifax to verify user identities for a $5 fee. Verified eBay User, a voluntary program, encourages users to supply eBay with information for online verification. By offering their Social Security number, driver’s license number, and date of birth, users can qualify for the highest level of verification on eBay.

>> Authentication service
Product authentication is a way of determining whether an item is genuine and described appropriately.Authentication is very difficult to perform because it relies on the expertise of the authenticators. Because of their training and experience, experts can (for a fee) often detect counterfeits based on subtle details. However, two expert authenticators may have different opinions about the authenticity of the same item.

>> Grading services
Grading is a way of determining the physical condition of an item, such as “poor quality” or “mint condition.” The actual grading system depends on the type of item being graded. Different items have different grading systems—for example, trading cards are graded from A1 to F1, whereas coins are graded from poor to perfect uncirculated.

>> Feedback Forum
The eBay Feedback Forum allows registered buyers and sellers to build up their online trading reputations. It provides users with the ability to comment on their experiences with other individuals.

>> Insurance policy
eBay offers insurance underwritten by Lloyd’s of London. Users are covered up to $200, with a $25 deductible. The program is provided at no cost to eBay users.

>> Escrow services
For items valued at more than $200 or when either a buyer or seller feels the need for additional security, eBay recommends escrow services (for a fee). With an easy-to-access link to a third-party escrow service, both partners in a deal are protected. The buyer mails the payment to the escrow service, which verifies the payment and alerts the seller when everything checks out. At that point, the seller ships the goods to the buyer. After an agreed-upon inspection period, the buyer notifies the service, which then sends a check to the seller. (An example of a provider of online escrow services is tradenable.com.)

>>Nonpayment punishment
eBay implemented a policy against those who do not honor their winning bids.To help protect sellers, a first-time nonpayment results in a friendly warning.A sterner warning is issued for a second-time offense, a 30-day suspension for a third offense, and indefinite suspension for a fourth offense.

>>Appraisal services
Appraisers use a variety of methods to appraise items, including expert assessment of authenticity and condition and reviewing what comparable items have sold for in the marketplace in recent months. An appraised value is usually accurate at the time of appraisal but may change over time as an item becomes more or less popular in the marketplace.

>>Verification
One way of confirming the identity and evaluating the condition of an item is through verification.With verification, neutral third parties will evaluate and identify an item through a variety of means. For example, some collectors have their item “DNA tagged” for identification purposes. This provides a way of tracking an item if it changes ownership in the future.

electronic currency

Electronic currency is the money or scrip that only exchangeable electronically. It also known as e-money, electronic cash and digital cash. It involves the use of Internet and computer network. The examples of electronic currency are the Electronic Funds Transfer and the direct deposit. The Octopus’s card which was applied in Hong Kong was a successful transit payment system that has growth into widely used electronic cash system.

Electronic or digital money is a representation, or a system of debits and credits, used to exchange value, within another system, or itself as a stand alone system, online or offline. Also sometimes the term electronic money is used to refer to the provider itself. A private currency may use gold to provide extra security, such as digital gold currency. An e-currency system may be fully backed by gold, non-gold backed, or both gold and non-gold backed. Also, some private organizations, such as the US military use private currencies such as Eagle Cash.
Many systems will sell their electronic currency directly to the end user, such as Paypal and WebMoney, but other systems, such as e-gold, sell only through third party digital currency exchangers.

Although digital cash can provide many benefits such as convenience and privacy, increased efficiency of transactions, lower transaction fees, and new business opportunities with the expansion of economic activities on the Internet, there are many potential issues with the use of digital cash. The transfer of digital currencies raises local issues such as how to levy taxes or the possible ease of money laundering. There are also potential macroeconomic effects such as exchange rate instabilities and shortage of money supplies (total amount of digital cash versus total amount of real cash available, basically the possibility that digital cash could exceed the real cash available). These issues may only be addressable by some type of cyberspace regulations or laws that regulate the transactions and watch for signs of trouble

Corporate Blogging

Corporate blogs are giving established companies and obscure brands alike the ability to connect with their audiences on a more personal level, build trust, collect valuable feedback and foster strengthened business relationships. More importantly, these companies are enjoying tangible returns in their blogging investment in the form of increased sales, partnerships, business opportunities, press coverage and lead generation.Besides, corporate blogs can also promoting the company's products towards the mass market. this can be considered as one of the most effective marketing tools for any business whether big or small.

Companies that employ a well thought out blogging strategy encourage the strongest community goodwill, and that goodwill, in turn, promotes significant marketing and sales gains. It is said that success breeds success. This holds very true for successful blogs. There is chain reaction that begins with a real desire on the part of the blogger to provide value and connect with their audience. The blogger shares useful and engaging content —the latest information, help, discussion topics and ideas. The way the audience responds to that content is key. When customers start commenting, posting or tracking back to a blogging community, it can have a viral effect —spreading out across the blogosphere. In addition, companies that harness their customers’ knowledge and ideas find better ways to satisfy their needs and wants, thus facilitating goodwill in the community. For example, it is a common practice in blogging to provide a link back to a thought originator, which is valuable because backlinks are a way that search engines distinguish the order of the editorial rankings. Higher search engine rankings translate into significantly higher web site traffic and more sales leads. Thus, successful blogging breeds success in other marketing and sales initiatives.

Greater word-of-mouth buzz on- and offline, higher search engine rankings, increased press coverage and superior lead generation are just some of the potential benefits of blogging in a corporate setting. In the next chapters, we will examine the blogging strategies of a number of companies, and learn how they are already reaping the rewards of their investment in corporate blogging.

Some business reasons for blogs:

1) Establish expertise. Many consultants effectively use blogs to raise their visibility with their target market.

2) Create alternative media. A number of publishers have built viable media outlets with loyal followings, as have companies that produce sponsored blogs, such as Gawker Media.

3) Extend corporate communications. Blogs enable companies to present a human face and voice to the public. The most notably example is Microsoft's Robert Scoble.

4) Build community. Use blogs to grow groups around a technology, cause, political issue, or hobby related to your product.

Examples of the companies involved in Blogging (hyperlink):
1. Flash and Macomedia ( Adobe)
2. IBM
3. Boeing
4. Kodak
5. Facebook
6. DELL
7. Google
8. Yahoo, and etc

Types of Corporate Blogs

1. Internal Blogs

An internal blog, generally accessed through the corporation's Intranet, is a weblog that any employee can view. Many blogs are also communal, allowing anyone to post to them. The informal nature of blogs may encourage:

-> employee participation

-> free discussion of issues

-> collective intelligence

-> direct communication between various layers of an organization

-> a sense of community

Internal blogs may be used in lieu of meetings and e-mail discussions, and can be especially useful when the people involved are in different locations, or have conflicting schedules. Blogs may also allow individuals who otherwise would not have been aware of or invited to participate in a discussion to contribute their expertise.

2. External Blogs

An external blog is a publicly available weblog where company employees, teams, or spokespersons share their views. It is often used to announce new products and services (or the end of old products), to explain and clarify policies, or to react on public criticism on certain issues. It also allows a window to the company culture and is often treated more informally than traditional press releases, though a corporate blog often tries to accomplish similar goals as press releases do. In some corporate blogs, all posts go through a review before they're posted. Some corporate blogs, but not all, allow comments to be made to the posts.

External corporate blogs, by their very nature,

are biased, though they can also offer a more honest and direct view than traditional communication channels. Nevertheless, they remain public relations tools.

Marketers might expect to have product evange

lists or influencers among the audience of an external blog. Once they find them, they may treat them like VIPs, asking them for feedback on exclusive previews, product testing, marketing plans, customer services audits, etc.

The business blog can provide additional value by adding a level of credibility that is often unobtainable from a standard corporate site. The informality and increased timeliness of information posted to blogs assists with increasing transparency and accessibility in the corporate image. Business blogs can interact with a target market on a more personal level while building link credibility that can ultimately be tied back to the corporate site.

Mc Donald's corporate blogs for quality and taste review.

Comapany that assists others business to involve in corporate blogging.

Infosys blogs for its stakeholders to share opinions.

Lenovo engaged blogging method for marketing purposes.

The application of pre-paid cash card for consumers ( updated version)

Pre-paid cash card (stored value card)

A pre-paid cash card or better known as stored value card (SVC) is a credit card-sized plastic card with an integrated circuit embedded in it. This embedded circuit allows the card to store information and perform certain transactions when inserted into special devices designed to read and process the cards. There are two main categories: closed-loop cards, such as merchant gift cards, transit system fare cards, and prepaid telephone cards; and open-loop cards, which can be used at many retail merchants and for banking purposes, such as receiving direct deposits or withdrawing cash from automated teller machines. Open-loop cards can be reloaded with additional value. Banks have been offering stored value cards as a gateway to servicing the needs of consumers who have income from wages or benefits but lack access to conventional checking or savings accounts. Transaction security can range from low to high, depending on the pre-determined application of the card. Although stored value cards can be used to support a variety of applications and perform a variety of functions, the ones supported by the U.S. Department of the Treasury are used primarily to perform financial transactions.

examples of pre-paid cash card (stored value cards)

Application of pre-paid cash card( stored value card)

The business case for stored value cards (i.e. gift cards, coffee cards, phone cards, gas cards, etc.) has been proven time and time again. Stored value cards not only enable quick point-of-sale processing times, but they can be given away as gifts thereby attracting new customers to your business. Grow your customer base by implementing a stored value card program today. Federal Agencies currently using SVC applications include the Army, Air Force, Marines, and Navy. SVC systems are installed on Army and Air Force bases in the U.S. wherever a basic training operation exists, overseas at several bases with deployed troops, as well as on ships at sea. SVC cards can be used as payment in post exchanges and post offices, ships stores, vending machines, and used for MW.

Sample or applications:

• Payroll Cards
• Benefits Cards
• Gift Cards
• Employee Purchases
• Sales Commissions
• Employee Incentive
• Travel Expense Card
• Parent-to-Student Money Transfer
• General Money Transfer
• Shopping Mall Card
• Long Distance Telephone Card

Stored Value Cards and Pre-Paid ATM cards available for "closed loop" and "open loop" applications. These cards can also be specified as re-loadable or non-reloadable cards.

SVC in fast food industry

served for transportation purposes

SVC can act as "gift card"

Benefits:

The Financial Management Services has developed a number of SVC applications designed to improve financial controls and cash-management applications, streamline administrative processes, and improve the quality of life of cardholders. Stored value cards are low-cost, easy to issue, and easy to use. They have been used to:

• Simplify administrative processes for issuing financial instruments to individuals
• Convert cash and paper transactions to electronic
• Eliminate the cost of securing, transporting, and accounting for cash
• Speed transaction time at point-of-sale
• Eliminate manually intensive back-end processes associated with scrip, vouchers, meal tickets, money orders, traveler's checks, and other payment mechanisms
• Eliminate financial "float-loss"
• Reduce exposure to risk of theft/loss
• Improve quality of life for cardholders
• SVC resulted convenient towards consumers
  

Mobile payment system in M'sia: Its potentials and consumers' adoption strategies

What Mobile Can Do For You?

Mobile payment is actually a walking ATM Machine. It is a virtual wallet residing in your mobile phone. People can have all kind of convenient ans easy steps for paying bills, buying prepaid or ring tone, reloading phone amount, even transferring money to any hand phone, any bank accounts at anytime from anywhere around the world. This not only can bring forward the technology, and also bring convenient to life!

Mobile Money is a PIN-based mobile payment solution designed to address the limitations and bottlenecks created by cash, cheque and credit cards. It also gives the freedom to shoppers to buy products online and pay the merchant using his/her mobile phone without being physically present at the store.

When it comes to online selling, selecting a payment gateway is one of the major obstacles faced by the merchants in Malaysia. There are too few choices available, worse, none of these limited choices are cost effectively. This problem has been addressed by Mobile Money, since it allows merchants to take online order without the need for online shopper to disclose their credit card information.

There are many advantages for a person to have mobile commerce:
*start a low cost franchise

*earn loyalty income

*as mobile credit card

*buy direct from suppliers to save or to do trading

Nowadays, mobile money has work together with government department such as TNB and Syabas Sdn Bhd to create easy payment for consumers. This way not only can give consumer a easy way to settle their bills payment, it also can bring the work growth into efficient. What is the trend today? Mobile Money International Sdn Bhd targets to achieve one million users for its new service Mobile Money Wallet (MM Wallet), which had been launch 2 months ago.