Three major Japanese computer manufacturers have aligned with four banks in Japan to ease the use of electronic commerce. NEC Corp, Hitachi Ltd, Fujitsu Ltd, together with Sakura Bank, Sanwa Bank, Sumitomo Bank and Dai-Ichi Kangyo Bank will establish an organization to manage the joint venture.
The Electronic Commerce Payment Association of Japan, as it is provisonally named, will begin work this month to facilitate compatible e-commerce payment processing and transaction management. Currently, online trade is only possible if banks, consumers and retailers all use the same software and bank with the same institution.
The computer companies have been developing e-commerce software in accordance to a common set of specifications – Secure Electronic Commerce Environment – but each suite has unique features which preclude interoperability.
