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The revolutionary development of network technologies launched electronic
commerce as a global phenomenon. Consequently, the policy issues that arise
from its use create new responsibilities for policy makers world-wide. Apart
from the technical (e.g. fast and reliable networks) and regulatory (e.g. legal
frameworks and standardization) challenges that need to be tackled there are
a number of social concerns that also need consideration. It is important for
policy makers
to see Internet use and electronic commerce as a social as well
as a technical phenomenon. In this paper we examine how social concerns
such as trust and digital democracy pertain to all levels of Internet and
electronic commerce policy, posing dilemmas and influencing the construction
of an effective and socially responsible strategy for electronic commerce.
INTRODUCTION
Policy implementation for electronic commerce is a complex process since
policy makers, national governments in their majority, have to act in a fast changing
environment. They need to balance special national demands with international
cooperation (Papazafeiropoulou and Pouloudi, 2000). One of the areas that policy
makers have to tackle is dealing with barriers that have been reported in the
adoption of electric commerce today. These barriers are mostly derived from
factors such as lack of awareness about the opportunities offered by electronic