Billions are invested in reliance on its growth potential, the media are blanketed with stories about it, and it is the dominant theme in numerous conferences of business people and lawyers. The problem is that consumers view the Internet with fear as well as fascination. This talk will discuss three of the characteristics that seem particularly important, and will pair the pros and cons in a way that may make them easier to remember.
Sellers can readily gather a great deal of information about buyers, without their knowledge.
This makes it possible for sellers to respond efficiently to consumer demand but it also heightens consumer concerns about privacy. In this sense, the medium is uniquely informative but also uniquely intrusive . Sellers can communicate with buyers virtually without cost. This facilitates almost instantaneous and low-cost competitor entry but also makes it more difficult for consumers to feel confident about the integrity of the sellers. In this sense, the medium is uniquely accessible but also uniquely anonymous .