The largest computer network in the world is the Internet. With the astonishing growth of the Internet nowadays, many companies are finding new ways to expand their business opportunities. It can also be said that almost all companies use computers in their daily activities. Therefore, e-commerce is emerging as an increasingly important way for businesses to reach potential customers. IntroductionWhat exactly is e-commerce? Most casual Internet users think that e-commerce simply means buying and selling online. Yet this is not the case. Simply put, e-commerce is the electronic exchange of business information between two or more organizations. There are e-commerce conducted between companies and those conducted between a company and its consumers. Business-to-business e-commerce occurs through electronic data exchange over private networks. Companies that regularly do business together will set up automated and fast information exchange such as delivering shares and receiving confirmation. For business-to-consumer e-commerce, the Web has become the dominant channel. It includes buying and selling any item on the Internet, electronic fund transfer, shipment tracking, and all other methods of conducting business on digital networks. Additionally, there is consumer-to-consumer e-commerce which involves consumers selling products directly to each other using the Internet. A good example will be the eBay auction site. Clearly, e-commerce will change the face of business forever. Companies located thousands of miles away can complete business transactions in seconds and exchange information. Advantages of e-commerce The first advantage of e-commerce is speed. With the Internet, businesses can send messages to each other... in the middle of paper......and the Internet and e-commerce are here to stay, so businesses can change with the times or fall behind. The choice is up to them. References Bovee, Thill, Mescon, (2005), Excellence in Business, Prentice-Hall, Upper Saddle River, NJ. What is e-commerce? June 15, 1999 issue of CIO Enterprise Magazine http://www.cio.com/archive/enterprise/061599_curve.html Tanya Candia, IT Security: Take a Walk on the Dark Side, (09/21/2005), www. TechNewsWorld. com Part of the ECT News Networkhttp://www.ecommercetimes.com/story/46059.htmlU.S Census Bureau, Department of commerce ¨C Washington DC, (AUGUST 19, 2005), QUARTERLY RETAIL E-COMMERCE SALES - 2ND QUARTER 2005http://www.census.gov/mrts/www/data/html/05Q2.htmlKeith Regan, Online Advertising Continues to Grow Rapidly, (9/27/2005), Electronic Commerce Timeshttp://www. ecommercetimes.com/story/46381.html