RESTRICTEDWORLD TRADE
ORGANIZATIONG/C/W/128/Add.1
31 October 2000
(00-4559)
Council for Trade in Goods
WORK PROGRAMME ON ELECTRONIC COMMERCE
ACTIVITIES OF INTERGOVERNMENTAL ORGANIZATIONS RELATED TO THE
WORK OF THE COUNCIL FOR TRADE IN GOODS
Background Note by the Secretariat
Addendum
I. INTRODUCTION
At the informal meeting of the Council for Trade in Goods on Electronic Commerce of
4 October 2000, the Secretariat was requested to provide, in time for consideration at the next
informal meeting, an overview of work of other intergovernmental organizations in areas that relate to
e-commerce issues under discussion in the CTG1.  An initial overview of the activities of
intergovernmental organizations in the area of electronic commerce was provided in document
G/C/W/128.  The present document updates the information given.
It appears that none of the intergovernmental orga nizations approached carries out regulatory work
directly related to the subjects under examination in the Council for Trade in Goods.  However, some
of the research undertaken by these organizations provides insights that may be relevant for the work
in the WTO.  The note gives a broad overview of the activities of the relevant organizations.
In November 1998, the WTO Secretariat had distributed documents prepared by the OECD
and UNCTAD which address the work undertaken by international organizations in the area of
electronic commerce.  These documents have been updated in 1999, as “Revised Report on
International and Regional Bodies: Activities and Initiatives in Electronic Commerce”
(SG/EC(99)5)2 and “Legal Dimensions of Electronic Commerce,” respectively.3
                                                     
1 The issues set out in paragraph 3.1 of the Work Programme on Electronic Commerce (WT/L/274)
are: (i) market access for and  access to products related to  electronic commerce; (ii) valuation issues
arising from the application of the Agreement on Implementation of Article VII of the GATT 1994;
(iii) issues arising from the application of the Agreement on Import Licensing Procedures; (iv) customs
duties and other duties and charges as defined under Article II of GATT 1994; (v) standards in relationto electronic commerce; (vi) rules of or igin issues; (vii) classification issues.
2 Copies are available in the Market Access Division of the WTO Secretariat.
3The UNCTAD report is available on the internet at http://www.unctad.org/en/docs/c3em8d2.pdf.G/C/W/128/Add.1
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II. ORGANIZATIONS COVERED BY THIS NOTE
1. OECD
The OECD has carried out research in various areas relating to electronic commerce.
Work in the Trade Directorate has tended to focus on services issues, with papers in
preparation on: "Electronic Commerce: Existing GATS commitments for Online Supply of Services"
(TD/TC/WP(99)/37/REV2 - currently before members for approval), and on the possibility of taking a
"cluster" approach to input services for e-commerce.
However, work has also considered the supply of "products" on line, without prejudice to the
issue of whether these "products" are considered to be goods, services, or something else.  "Trade
Policy Aspects of Electronic Commerce: Online Product Customisation" (TD/TC/WP(98)65/FINAL)
provides an overview of the role played by customisation in various e-commerce activities, together
with a set of case studies of products that are customised and delivered online4.  Following from this,
a paper on "Electronic Commerce: Case Stud ies on the "Downloadable" Digital Products"
(TD/TC/WP(99)60, currently being revised) provides a set of case studies of the online delivery
processes for that group of digital information "products" that can be delivered in both "packaged"
form (attached to physical carrier media) and over electronic networks.  The aim of the paper is to
provide an empirical basis for assessment of the main characteristics of online delivery compared to
"packaged” delivery of digital information.
Additionally, work has explored unilateral liberalisation and facilitation measures undertaken
by governments to promote e-commerce - see "Electronic Commerce: Initial Survey of Unilateral
Liberalisation and Facilitation Measures" (TD/TC/WP(99)38/FINAL).5  Initial work has also been
undertaken on existing legal approaches to jurisdictional issues for the international sale of goods andservices - see "Jurisdictional Issues in International Commercial Transactions and Approaches to
Regulatory Jurisdiction"(TD/TC/WP(98)55).
The OECD Directorate for Science, Technolo gy and Industry (DSTI) has prepared several
studies over the last two years.
A study on ”Trade in Software” attempts to measure the extent to which international
transactions are, or could become, "digital" and raises policy issues related to international trade in
electronic markets.
6  The paper argues that across-the-border electronic commerce involving goods
will continue to face custom duties and value added tax. The main challenge to fiscal and custom
authorities will come from supplies of on-line activities. Tariffs on computer software do not seem to
constitute a significant trade barrier. The crucial issue for international trade in on-line activities is theelimination of international differences in regulato ry barriers affecting access to electronic markets.
The paper further states that the implications of electronic commerce for collecting conventional
income and sales taxes are also significant, but the possibility of raising substantial revenues by taxing
international internet transactions is very low owing to the geographical mobility of the potential
"Internet tax payer". Moreover, electronic transactions are difficult to monitor, and internationalelectronic transactions might be technically impossible to trace, although it may be possible to
develop technology for auditing international transactions of some digital products.
                                                     
4 The document is available at http://appli1.oecd .org/olis/1999doc.nsf/LinkTo/td-tc-wp(99)38-final
5 The document is available at http://appli1.oecd .org/olis/1998doc.nsf/LinkTo/td-tc-wp(98)65-final
6 The document is available at http://www.oecd.org/dsti/sti/it/ec/prod/sw-trade.htmG/C/W/128/Add.1
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A study on “Local Access Pricing and E-Commerce” examines the performance of different
OECD countries, in the development and usage of the Internet, in relation to the pricing of access.7
The price of access to the Internet, and the structure of this pricing, is one of the key factors inexplaining the relative development of electronic commerce across the OECD area. The available
evidence suggests that there is a growing ‘international digital divide’ emerging between OECDcountries. This conclusion is contrary to a widespr ead view that the gaps between countries in the
development of electronic commerce are  narrowing.
The OECD has also prepared a review on market openness and trade in telecommunications.
8
The review evaluates developments in telecommunication market openness following the
liberalisation in 1998 in the context of the WTO agreement and the liberalisation in the European
Union. Second, it is aimed at stimulating reflection on the issues that may need to be examined toenhance market liberalisation and market openness.
The publication “Measuring the ICT Sector” is a statistical publication covering, among other
variables, trade in information and communication technology goods using official data.
9
In addition, the “Science and Technology Outl ook 2000” describes the rapid growth in the
supply and demand for information technology goods and services and their role in the expanding
Internet economy.  The report also looks at emerging uses of information technology and reflects the
spread and diversity of a technology that is underpinning economic and social transformation.  Inter
alia, it contains a section on trade in information and communication technology products.10
2. United Nations Commission on International Trade Law (UNCITRAL)
The UNCITRAL Working Group on Electronic Commerce developed a “Model Law on
Electronic Commerce,” (1996) which aims at enha ncing the role of paperless communication through
provision of rules by which the legal value of electronic messages can be assessed, and legal obstacles
to the communication of legally significant data can be removed. The Model Law addresses questions
of requirements of data messages for contracts of term s such as “writing,” “signature,” or “original.”
Copies of the Model Law on Electronic Commerce were made available to delegations through the
WTO Secretariat in November 1998.11  Presently, the Working Group on Electronic Commerce is
preparing draft uniform rules on electronic signatures and a corresponding draft guide to enactment.
Possible future work in the area of electronic commerce may include “electronic contracting”,“dispute settlement,” and “documents of title.”
3. UNCTAD
The UNCTAD Secretariat has prepared the following documents on Electronic Commerce:
• BUILDING CONFIDENCE: ELECTRONIC COMMERCE AND DEVELOPMENT,
February 2000
12
                                                     
7 The document is available at http://www.oecd.org/dsti/sti/it/cm/prod/localaccess.htm
8 The document is available at http:// www.oecd.org/dsti/sti/it/cm/prod/tisp99-5e.htm
9 The document is available at http://www.oecd.org/dsti/sti/it/prod/measuring_ict.htm
10 More information on this publication is available on the internet at
 http://www.oecd.org/dsti/ sti/it/prod/it-out2000-e.htm
11 The Model Law, including a 1998 amendment on “incorporation by reference” (Article 5 bis) is
available at http://www.uncitral.org/english/texts/electcom/ml-ec.htm.
12 The document is available at http://www.unctad.org/ecommerce/building.pdfG/C/W/128/Add.1
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• ELECTRONIC COMMERCE AND TOURISM. NEW PERSPECTIVES AND
CHALLENGES FOR DEVELOPING COUNTRIES, July 2000 (TD/B/COM.3/EM.9/2)13
• REPORT OF THE EXPERT MEETING ON CAPACITY-BUILDING IN THE AREA OF
ELECTRONIC COMMERCE: LEGAL AND REGULATORY DIMENSIONS, August 1999
(TD/B/COM.3/28 and TD/B/COM.3/EM.8/3)14
• LEGAL DIMENSIONS OF ELECTRONIC COMMERCE, May 1999,
(TD/B/COM.3/EM.8/2)15
• ELECTRONIC COMMERCE: LEGAL CONSIDERATIONS, May 1998
(UNCTAD/SDTE/BFB/1)16
• POLICY ISSUES RELATING TO ACCESS TO PARTICIPATION IN ELECTRONIC
COMMERCE, (TD/B/COM.3/16)17
• IMPLICATIONS FOR TRADE AND DEVELOPMENT OF RECENT PROPOSALS TO
SET UP A GLOBAL FRAMEWORK FOR ELECTRONIC COMMERCE
 (TD/B/COM.3/17)18
• TRAINING IN THE AREA OF ELECTRONIC COMMERCE: NEEDS AND
POSSIBILITIES, (TD/B/COM.3/EM.6/2)19
• CAN ELECTRONIC COMMERCE BE AN ENGINE FOR GLOBAL GROWTH?
ELECTRONIC COMMERCE AND THE INTEGRATION OF DEVELOPING
COUNTRIES AND COUNTRIES WITH ECONOMIES IN TRANSITION IN
INTERNATIONAL TRADE,  (TD/B/COM.3/23)20
• E-COMMERCE IN AFRICA. AN ASSESSMENT OF STATUS AND STRATEGIES,
October 199921
4. World Bank
In the World Bank, work related to or influenced by electronic commerce is carried out in
various departments.  One research paper which addresses issues of the WTO work programme was
published as Policy Research Working Paper No. 2380 (June 2000): “Trade Policies for Electronic
Commerce” (Mattoo and Schuknecht).22 The paper argues that even if all delivery of digitizable
media products moved online, the revenue loss for most countries would be small.  The paper points
                                                     
13 The document is available at http://www.unc tad.org/ecommerce/conferences/expert/index.htm
14 The document is available at http://www.unctad.org/en/special/c3em8do.htm
15 The document is available at http://www.unctad.org/en/special/c3em8do.htm
16 The document is available at http://www.unctad.org/en/special/c3em8do.htm
17 The document is available at http://www.unctad.org/en/special/c3d16.htm
18 The document is available at http://www.unctad.org/en/special/c3d17.htm
19 The document is available at http://www.unctad.org/en/special/c3em6d2.htm
20 The document is available at http://www.unctad.org/en/special/c3dos4.htm
21 The document is available at http://www.unctad.org/ecommerce/nairobi/index-eng.htm
22 The document is available at:
http://wbln0018.worldbank.org/research/workpapers.nsf/0/7ba84d39a5a5bddb8525690b0057c1d0/$FI
LE/wps2380.pdfG/C/W/128/Add.1
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out that a moratorium on customs duties in the WTO does by itself not ensure continued open access
for electronically delivered products and may even prompt recourse to other instruments of protection.
Barrier-free electronic commerce would be more effectively secured by deepening and widening the
limited cross-border trade commitments under the General Agreement on Trade in Services (GATS)
and by clarifying and strengthening certain GATS disciplines.
5. World Customs Organization (WCO)
There have been no further discussions concerning questions relating to electronic commerce
either in the HS Committee or in the Technical Committee on Customs Valuation.  According to the
WCO Secretariat, WCO members preferred to leave relevant electronic commerce related issues to
the WTO.  Already in 1996, the WCO Secretariat prepared a note on “Electronic Commerce forCustoms,” which discusses technology-related challenges for customs administrations.
23
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23 The document is available at http://www.wcoomd.org/procedures/TC39686E.pdf