Smart homes will not need painting. Colors will change with the seasons. Food containers will send cooking codes to the microwave. Clothing will be more “flexible”.

Phone numbers won’t be assigned to physical devices but to users. We will each have a universal phone number, no mater where we go and no matter how we communicate. Older wired phones will know who is nearby and ring as necessary!

Back towards our traditional view of eCommerce, advertising will be more adapted. Drive by a billboard and your “wireless, voice-activated computer contact lenses” will show a sign alerting to your interests. A passing cab will advertise the local car dealership. That is, only if you need a car!

Digitized products will be sent anywhere, paid by universal currencies.

Citizens will vote remotely, from anywhere. And governments will contact them, again anywhere.

For the “Baby Boomer” generation, some advances may be just in time. Illnesses will be diagnosed remotely with personalized Expert Systems. Pills will transmit symptoms. Custom prescription drugs will be created at home with small chemistry units and downloaded prescription formulae.

Other eCommerce ventures may include totally virtual vacations, virtual schoolhouses, virtual friends and virtual consumer products. Gamers will purchase new clothes for their personal avatar. Humanoids may be working alongside us (Humanoids never go “home”).

There are, however, some related issues which must be addressed and which may impact the future of eCommerce. In particular, there is a global “digital divide” of technology between the wealthy and the less developed nations. There are differences about national control over the Internet and over data crossing national borders. Some also argue for universal Internet access. Others are studying how sales taxes should levied on international eCommerce transactions. Another area of interest is the impact of artificial intelligence on commerce. What is the ethical status of robots? Can a humanoid hold a patent for an invention? Can a human work for a humanoid? Can a robot purchase on eBay?

Despite the risks of peering into the future of eCommerce, one thing can be certain. Someone, in years to come, will write about our “new communications technology…that allowed people to communicate almost instantly across great distances, in effect shrinking the world faster and further than ever before…”

A professional snapshot of Dr. John Sagi...

John Sagi is Associate Professor of Business and Computer Systems at Anne Arundel Community College, Arnold, Maryland, and Associate Professorial Lecturer at The George Washington University, Washington, DC. He holds a BS from the United States Naval Academy, an MS from Johns Hopkins University, and MS and PhD from The George Washington University. Dr Sagi is a Fulbright Senior Scholar to the Russian Federation, teaching electronic commerce. Dr Sagi’s research interests include global information systems, and the social and philosophical aspects of information technology. He has published on these topics in the Journal of Global Information Management, Technovation, and in the proceedings of several international conferences, including the World Future Society and the Portland International Conference on Management of Engineering and Technology. Dr Sagi is a former database administrator at NATO Headquarters, Brussels, Belgium, and information technology manager for FMC Corporation.