I was specifically asked to consider the interaction between electronic shopping and libraries. A series of models are first examined, including shopping, marketspaces, 'spontaneous procurement', 'deliberative procurement', the Internet, and Internet access. These are juxtaposed against a model of libraries in the information age. Several scenarios are then developed, which involve libraries as natural sources of support for purchasing-related activities. These centre around information about goods and services, information goods and services, and trust questions, with particular reference to anonymity and pseudonymity.
Attention is drawn to the dire threat of a new dark ages arising.
This presentation was a further development on a stream of work the author has undertaken over the last decade or so, which has resulted in many papers. The Inadequacy of Economic Analysis in a Time of Revolutionary Change' Proc. Electronic Trading in Copyright Objects and Its Implications for Universities' , Proc. The Internet as Harbinger of the New Dark Ages' , Proc. Freedom of Information and the Right to Know, Communications Law Centre and the International Commission of Jurists, Melbourne, 19-20 August 1999.