Annex IV. Steps to establish an electronic commerce operation 

E-commerce helps to:

• Overcome barriers to trade by reducing costs and helping to overcome physical barriers such as distance
• Trade in some intellectual services such as: consulting, medical services, online education services, databanks and other online information and knowledge retrievals (online libraries, databanks, statistical sources, etc.)
• Complements traditional means of undertaking trade:
  • Facilitates market research
  • Facilitates searching for goods and services and international purchasing
  • Advertizing and marketing
  • Facilitates transaction processing: purchase orders, invoices, custom clearance forms and duties, payments, shipping documents and airway bills, and other business to business transactions.