Participants in the EC-Oil exchange can view lot information via the Web, including lot number, type of oil, minimum ask price, minimum quantity, location of goods, payment method, and bidding period. It's a very different model. But the trading companies' massive size and dominance of the markets makes them ill suited to react quickly to a change agent like the Net. But oil in particular is a ticklish area. For one thing, it's strategically important for Japan, which has none of its own, and in the past there's been a lot of pressure on the government to play an active role in regulating the industry.
Some historians argue that the threat of an oil embargo helped propel Japan into the Pacific War.
Such pressure seems to be diminishing today. Therefore, the importance of oil is now declining. True competition among oil, coal, natural gas, and nuclear power will lead to a revitalization of Japan's industry. Electronic markets can survive in Japan. Given the fact that a few large companies now dominate the top of the food chain, some investors may be wary of putting any money into an oil-trading startup.