European Institute of Interdisciplinary Research (EIIR), France RIMANTAS GATAUTIS
Kaunas University of Technology (KTU), Lithuania *
Zaprezentowany artykuł przedstawia główne czynniki rozwoju rynku elektronicznego na Litwie. Postawiono w nim tezĊ, Īe rozwój rynku usług elektronicznych zaleĪy w znacznej mierze od skoordynowanych zmian na poziomie firm, kondycji rynku, zasobów ludzkich oraz kultury biznesowej. Analiza głównych czynników wzrostu poparta jest wprawdzie przykładami pozytywnego rozwoju, to jednak fakty dowodzą jednoznacznie, Īe handel elektroniczny na Litwie znajduje siĊ we wczesnym stadium rozwoju.
The paper analyses the main electronic business development drivers in Lithuania. This paper has argued that the sustainable development of electronic business depends on substantial and coordinated changes on the level of business firms, market conditions, human recourses, and the culture and institutions of society. The analysis of main factors affecting electronic business development presents several positive changes towards the development. Yet despite these changes the real situation shows that Lithuania is in the early stages of electronic business development.
1. Introduction
This paper explores key sets of drivers of development of electronic business in transition economies with particular reference to recent developments in Lithuania. Information and communication technologies (ICT) centered on the Internet are today widely recognized as one of the driving forces in the transition toward a new economic system. This transition has been especially challenging for European transition economies that are in the midst of a historic restructuring in anticipation of entry into the European These countries are confronting an historic challenge of converging to the economic, technological, and organizational practices and standards of their EU counterparts. ICT applications in the form of e-business provide a unique opportunity for companies in these economies to accelerate learning processes for the facilitation of the adoption and implementation of competitive and sustainable e-business strategies. A key challenge in this respect is how to develop electronic business that bridge civil society and organizations of the public sector in ways that support the transition toward an ICT-enabled economic system. The central thesis of this paper is that electronic business are a central component of an emerging economic system that is powered by ICT, is knowledge-driven, is organised around electronic and organisational networks that generate knowledge which transform industries and markets, and is
dependent on dynamic and flexible regulatory public institutions. For ICT to diffuse throughout the whole economy in a way that supports virtual community formation, business firms, market conditions, and the culture and institutions of society need to undergo substantial change in a coordinated manner. It is the dynamic interdependence of these conditions that is the source of innovation and value creation in the new knowledge-driven economy. The agenda of research on the dynamics of adoption of new economy practices, innovation, and economic growth, as a result, needs to be expanded beyond the level of the firm. It needs to be built around the dynamic interrelationships between technological transformations, firms’ organisational and knowledge-creating capabilities, emerging market and industry structures, and public institutions [Castells, 2000].
The paper situates drivers of electronic business and the necessity of coordination their development on four levels: the level of ICT infrastructure, regulatory environment, human recourses, and market or civic attitudes toward ICT-enabled market transactions. On each of these levels the observations made are conditioned by the definitional parameters of ‘electronic business’. For the purposes of this paper, electronic business is defined as business that is conducted, in a whole or in part, through digital infrastructure.
Lithuania, prior to its breaking away from COMECOM, was considered to be “the Silicon Valley of the USSR”. The industry base was technology and knowledge-intensive. It was the major producer of electronics, machine tools, chemicals and military equipment. Vytautas Magnus University, Vilnius University, Vilnius Gediminas Technical University and Kaunas University of Technology were the major knowledge centers producing highly skilled IT manpower.
2. ICT Infrastructure: the backbone?
ICT infrastructure encompasses the ICT framework underpinning the emergence of electronic business. It refers to computers and Internet usage within, between and across enterprises, governmental bodies and consumers or citizens. The use of ICT constitutes the basic precondition for the emergence of electronic business. In defining the critical constituencies of electronic business it is important not to exclude any of the above mentioned parties, because each of them can play a significant role in electronic business development and the significance of their roles depends on the context in which they operate.
With respect to Lithuania, the number of Internet users increased quite rapidly in 2002. In the summer of that year, more than one-fifth (21%) of the population was using the Internet at least sometimes. To gauge a sense of the speed of change it is worth mentioning that a year earlier the percentage was 11%. The number of regular Internet users also increased. During the same time 13.4% of Lithuania’s residents were using the Internet at least once a week or more often, while 17% used it at least once per month. Lithuania’s Department of Statistics has declared that by the end of the first six months of 2002, 12% of Lithuanian households had been equipped with a computer – a rise of one-third in comparison to the previous year. By early 2002, 5.9% of Lithuanian households had an Internet connection – this indicator had risen by 2.5 times in the period since December 2000. In 2002, 19% of the households in Lithuania’s largest towns and cities had computers, while the same was true of only 5% of homes in the countryside [Samuolis 2003].
4,6 6,2 6,5 13,4 16,9 7,2 8,7 8,9 13,1 17 20,3 21 11,3 22 14 10,9 9,9 8,4 0 5 10 15 20 25 Summer 2000 Winter 2000-2001 Summer 2001 Winter 2001-2002 Summer 2002 Winter 2002-2003 Once in 6 month and more often
Once a month and more often Once a week and more often
Figure 1. Dynamics of part of population using the Internet in year 2000-2003 [Department of Statistics, Lithuania, 2003]. 15,5 16,9 18,4 14,5 19,6 18,4 20,3 21,9 19,5 22,6 20,4 22 23,4 22,9 24,7 0 5 10 15 20 25 30 2002 winter 2003 winter 2003 spring 2003 summer 2003 autumn Weekly reach 1 month reach 6 month reach
Figure 2. Internet audiences reach trends. Autumn, 2002 - autumn, 2003 (%) [SIC Market Research, 2003].
5 9 1 2 1 9 2 ,3 3 ,2 5 ,9 6 ,2 0 2 4 6 8 1 0 1 2 1 4 1 6 1 8 2 0 2 0 0 0 m . 2 0 0 1 m . 2 0 0 2 m . 2 0 0 3 m . H o us e ho ld w ith c o m p ute rs
H o us e ho ld w ith Inte rne t a c c e s s
Figure 3. Dynamics of IT penetration in Lithuania's households, 2000-2003 (% of households) [Department of Statistics, Lithuania, 2003].
In the domain of business operations in the spring of 2002 around 67% of Lithuanian companies used computers. A total of 49% of Lithuanian enterprises were connected to the Internet, according to data from Emor and Taylor Nelson Sofres [Knowledge Economy in Lithuania, 2003]. Data from SIC Market Research show that by early 2002, the percentage of computerized companies that were using the Internet in Lithuania was up to 70%, and one fourth of those companies that had no Internet connection were planning to get one [SIC market research, 2002]. The majority of companies were still using dial-up connections to the Internet. However it is also true that companies that used the Internet did not use it very often. For instance, a significant number of in these companies (23%) spent less than 20 hours online each month. The most popular areas of Internet use at companies are E-mail (54%), data transmission (34%), and banking operations (18%). One-fourth of the companies that used the Internet had their own Web site at the time of the study.
Research conducted by the Department of Statistics in the processing industries and the service sector indicates that in early 2002, computer equipment was being used by 84% of companies in Lithuania (up from 80% in the same period in 2001). Companies that provide mail and distance connection services and those that are engaged in financial intermediation are best equipped with computers. In 2002, 66% of all of these companies had an Internet connection (compared to 59% in 2001), as did 78% of the companies that had computers. Only 41% of the enterprises used dial-up connections, and more than one-fifth had dedicated telephone lines for the Internet. The same research also shows that ISDN and xDSL services have become increasingly popular among businesses. In the first three quarters of 2002, for instance, the number of ISDN service users more than doubled, while the number of xDSL service users more than tripled. The same study also shows that 27% of the companies that were studied had their own Web sites, 7% sold goods or services online, 10% reported that they had bought goods or services online, and 32% of companies engaged in financial transactions online [Zilioniene, 2003].
The main factors that prevent companies from using the Internet to a wider extent include insufficient speed and excessive prices for Internet connections. These are clearly pointed out in research conducted by INFOBALT association (Lithuania ICT association) as main obstacles for infrastructure development [UNCTAD/WTO, 2002]. The growing availability of broadband access services across the Baltic States should drive the market forward in terms of both time spent online and penetration. In the survey carried out by SIC Market Research respondents point out major factors determining the length of being connected to Internet. 49% of the enterprises polled claim that they would apply possibilities provided by the Internet in their activity more extensively if usage charges were lower, while 30% would prefer communication channels of greater conduction. Approximately 10% of the respondents feel that they would like to have more services and a possibility to pay taxes via Internet [SIC Market Research, 2002].
A similar situation prevails in organizations of the public sector. According to Lithuania’s Department of Statistics and the Information Society Development Committee, the average number of computers per 100 state and local government employees in mid 2002 was 40. Approximately 60% of the staff at state and local institutions and agencies was using computers. A total of 40% of all employees and 68% of those who were using computers at the workplace were also using the Internet. By June 2002, nearly all of the surveyed state and local government institutions had Internet connections, and half of them had their own Web sites. More than one-third of state and local government institutions (36%) were providing administrative services online. During the first half of 2002, the computerization of state and local government institutions increased – the average number of computers grew by nearly 8%, the number of computers that were connected to the Internet rose by 9%, and the share of institutions that were connected to the Internet increased by 1% [SIC Market Research, 2002].
Considering such situation it can be stated that infrastructure development has accelerated in some ways. However, such development tends to be concentrated in only in major towns. To high cost ICT usage shows an imbalance – the business and consumers are prevented to use technologies because of economic/financial considerations and constraints. High prices are one of the reasons that inhibit a broader usage of ICT. This clearly demonstrates the desynhronization towards the technological issues – despite the growing use of technology the use of services (Internet connection) develops too slowly.
3. Regulatory framework
The Government of the Republic of Lithuania has declared the development of the information society to be a top priority, because creating the conditions needed for the development of an information society is one of the key requirements for the welfare of a modern country. The framework is composed of several interrelated areas of policy, social and economic development and systematic interactions with government agencies.
Figure 5. Regulatory structure affecting information society and electronic business development. The main documents that articulate the key organizing principles of government policy for the transition to the information society are the Conceptual Framework of the National Information Society Development of Lithuania [Lithuania Government, 2001] adopted by the government on 28 February 2001, which sets out the key objectives and priorities for the information society development processes, and Lithuania's Strategic Plan for the Development of the Information Society [Lithuania Government, 2001] passed by the government on 10 August 2001, which defines concrete goals and the institutions responsible for implementation of the priorities set out in the Conceptual Framework for the years 2001-2004.
The Conceptual Framework and the Strategic Plan set four priority areas for Lithuania's information society development: the competence of the Lithuanian population in IT usage; public administration; electronic business; Lithuanian culture and language.
The Strategic Plan is implemented through annual Detailed Action Plans, which are prepared by the Information Society Development Committee under the Government on the basis of suggestions provided by respective governmental institutions. The Detailed Action Plans define concrete measures, detailed timelines and budgetary allocation for the achievement of strategic goals. Policies were originally developed through an industry and government consultative mechanism, in which INFOBALT represents the industry's view. Input was also provided by the Chamber of Commerce and Industry and by the Association for Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises.
In 1996 the government established the State Data Protection Inspectorate, a supervisory authority responsible for monitoring and supervising the application of the Law on Legal Protection of Personal Data. In 1997, it approved common requirements on data protection for information systems of governmental and municipal institutions, and in 2000, the provisions of the State Register of Personal Data Controllers. In 2001, the government granted more power to the State Data Protection Inspectorate, consolidating its independent status as an institution and empowering it not only to supervise the application of the Law on Legal Protection of Personal Data, but also to implement the provisions of the Council of Europe Convention ETS No. 108 [Zilioniene, 2003]. General legal Acts of the Republic of Lithuania regulating Data Protection: The purpose of this Law shall be the protection of the right of inviolability of the person’s private life related to the processing of personal data and creation of the conditions for a free movement of personal data. An analysis of EU legal acts reveals that the Lithuanian regulatory environment designed to implement EU legal requirements in the field of consumer protection is far from satisfactory. Despite the fact that the formal enactment aspects and the legal basis seem well structured the basic problems lie with the day-to-day implementation of legal standards. Unfortunately, Lithuanian legislators often simply reproduce EU documents without further analyzing the possible legal or economic consequences of plagiarized "legislation", thus ignoring problems associated with the application of such legal acts to specific cases, etc.
The lack of coordination of development between ICT infrastructure development and a credible regulatory framework of consumer protection, as a result, is reflected in the following:
− E-commerce in Lithuania that is only at a very early stage of development;
− Lack of national consumer protection associations and organizations, active in the areas of education, information, etc.
− Passive consumers and Internet users are (only a few complaints about infringement of rights 111 the Internet context have been filed with the National Consumer Protection Agency, and there are no such claims before the courts of die law), i.e., Lithuanian consumers are inclined to accept violations of their rights and interests committed online.
− Principles of reasonableness, transparency, good faith, fairness and mutual trust are of major importance in the context of consumer protection on the Internet
− With contracts concluded online, an offer is considered made on the mere invitation to make an offer. However, Lithuanian legislation does not address this issue
− Acceptance on the Internet as a rule is expressed electronically. The requirement set forth in Articles 1.73 and 6.192 of the Civil Code therefore gives cause for doubt, as it strictly requires that in order to meet the legal obligations as to the form, die transaction is to be executed in the enumerated manner or by virtue of "terminal telecommunications equipment". The basic issues in this respect concern what occurs when the Internet is accessed not via terminal telecommunications equipment, but for instance, via LAN, or via DSL, ADSL, etc
4. Human recourses
The simplest and most common indicator of the increase in school computers is the student-computer ratio. In September 2001, there was one student-computer on average for 49 pupils. By the end of the year, the anticipated level of one computer per 40 pupils was reached. The computerization
level of the individual schools in different municipalities differed. At the beginning of the 2001-2002 school year, each primary school possessed on average 5-5.4 computers, each secondary school 10.1, and each gymnasium 24. In 2002, 33.92% of Lithuania’s schools had Internet access. This indicator varies greatly in different municipalities. Only 10% of the schools have their own Internet websites (4% more than in 2000).
The percentage of students in society is increasing. During 1995-2001, the number of universities per 10 thousand inhabitants more than doubled (from 145 to 307). In 2001, one in every 32 inhabitants was a student. The total number of students pursuing a higher education doubled as well (from 57.5 thousand to 115 thousand). The number of people pursuing a doctor’s degree increased 1.6 times during the same period. In 2001, the majority of all secondary school graduates pursued a higher education (74%) while 20% pursued a non-university higher education. Net enrolment in higher education in 2000 was about 20% with every fifth youth between the ages of 19-25 pursuing a higher education. The number of higher education graduates has been increasing and in 2001 reached 11.6 thousand. The number of students paying for their own studies is also rapidly increasing. In 2000-2001, it consisted of 32.6% of the total enrolment and almost half (45.5%) of first year students.
In closing, it can be concluded that positive tendencies, adequate for the country’s economic needs, are observable in the number of graduates in Lithuania. For example, considering the increased role of informatics not only in the economy but also in everyday life, the increasing number of graduates in mathematics and computer science is a very positive tendency, because it show the growing potential of electronic business development as this segment is future electronic business segment. Taking into consideration the low level of computerization and Internet access in educational institutions in shows the desynhronization as well – the development of electronic business requires more active support for educational sector.
5. Market/consumer issues
Unless infrastructure and policy favorable to the development of electronic business move in tandem, market issues, such as consumers’ willingness to use ICT for commercial transaction are likely to compromise the development of electronic business. The survey “Digital Lithuania” reflects the main inhabitants attitudes [Digital Lithuania, 2001].
Lithuania’s consumer and citizen attitudes toward the information society, and hence electronic business development, are dual in nature. On the one hand, higher use of ICT in everyday economic life and business transactions is associated with a better quality of life and increased efficiency; on the other, there are significant reservations regarding the current situation in the country and government that imply negative views about a future of compromised privacy. This is borne out by recent research. For instance, almost three quarters of all respondents (73.8%) think that the information society is of significant need to all Lithuanian citizens, i.e. many Lithuanians follow the conception of democratic informatization necessity – they do not connect digital development of Lithuania with interest of specific social groups. The education and age of people have statistically significant impact on such respondents’ opinion: people of retirement age, as well as not having high education mostly have chosen variant “it is difficult to say” and the most rare – “to all citizens of Lithuania” [Digital Lithuania, 2001].
However, one key indicator of possible future developments lies in demographics which show positive attitudes toward the Internet among the young. According to recent research many of 15
year olds (72.3%) directly link the process of informatization with the hope of the better life, i.e. the hold a conception of optimistic impact of informatization. On the other hand, almost all parents would like their children to be Internet users. 51.3% and 21% of all respondents think that development of the information society will have a strong impact on Lithuania’s economy and the development of the standard of life. 39.7% of respondents, working or studying, think that they can carry out the part of their work at home with computer and via Internet [Digital Lithuania, 2001].
The areas selected by respondents, in which in their opinion computerization should have the highest positive impact, show more detailed optimistic trends of e-commerce development. There are several of those areas: economy development, labour market, family terms and health. Even 78.2% of respondents think that computerization affects the country’s economical welfare positively and very positively, only 3.5% - negatively and 15% have no opinion. Even 66% of all respondents think that informatization would have the most positive impact for the progress of Lithuania’s economy, 50.7% - for education, 42.7% - for background. 43.1% of all respondents think that computerization affects their and their family’s welfare or very positively or positively. Only 6.4% claim that such effect is negative, and 31.7% have no opinion. Almost a half of respondents - 46.9% - think that informatization would have made the most benefit in the field of employment, but not in the fields of education, leisure or public life. More than a half of all respondents – 50.8% - have indicated the economic backwardness of Lithuania as the main drag of information-oriented and e-commerce development.
Despite these positive tendencies demographic issues remain controversial. When comparing the results of Internet and PC users survey of October-December, 2000 and December-February, 2000/2001, no significant change of the number of people that used Internet is observed. Compared to the fourth quarter of the last year, the rate of Internet usage (who used Internet during 6 months) in the winter of 2000/2001 remained stable -10%. Comparing the results of Internet and PC users surveys of first quarter, 2001, made in neighboring countries - Latvia and Estonia with results of Lithuanian survey carried out on winter 2000/2001, noticeable that share of Internet users in Latvia and Estonia is considerably bigger than in Lithuania (17% in Latvia, 32% in Estonia). Seems obvious that the number of Internet users in Lithuania has space to grow.
According the results of Internet and PC users survey Winter 2000/2001, 15% of town inhabitants (towns with more than 30000 inhabitants) used the Internet. Only 4,9% Internet users live in countryside and little towns (till 30000 inhabitants). The biggest share (30.9%) among the Internet users makes educated managers and professionals: well educated top and middle level managers, responsible for the staff; educated independent or self-employed professionals. Respondents mainly use Internet at their work places - 54,3% and only 24% of respondents use Internet at home. Comparing data of winter 2000/2001 and data of IV quarter, 2000, of PC and Internet Users Survey, increased the share of people, who used Internet at the public Internet usage places: in IV quarter, 2000 – 5.2%, in winter 2000/2001 – 7.4%. When questioned about the purpose of Internet usage, for the most part respondents indicated 3 purposes: purposive search for some information - 5.4%, search for information necessary for the job - 3.9%, getting and sending e-mails - 3.9%. Still, referring to SIC Market Research, the main Internet usage semen is 15-34 years aged people.
25-34 years 26% 15-24 years 46% 50-74 years 6% 35-49 years 22%
Figure 6. Share of Internet users by age groups (percent of those who have used internet per 6 months) autumn, 2003 [SIC Market Research, 2003]
The SIC Market Research survey reflects the main reasons of not purchasing goods online. About 37 percents of respondents argued it is more easy and fun to buy goods/services in stores. Another important issues can be observed in two next major answers groups – other reasons (25 percents) and it is more secure to buy offline (21 percent).
37 21 14 13 12 12 7 7 4 0 25 0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80 E a s ie r/ m o re f u n t o b u y g o o d s /s e rv ic e s i n a s to re It 's m o re s e c u re b u y in g g o o d s a n d / o r s e rv ic e s i n a s to re It 's t o o d if fi c u lt / la c k o f k n o w le d g e Y o u d o n 't k n o w w h a t y o u g e t P ri c e s t o o h ig h / e x p e c t lo w e r p ri c e s o n t h e I n te rn e t D o n 't t ru s t o n lin e b ra n d s /l a c k o f tr u s tw o rt h in e s s D o n 't w a n t to g iv e c re d it c a rd d e ta ils /s e c u ri ty p ro b le m s T im e t o d e liv e r g o o d s i s t o o lo n g / o th e r d e liv e ry p ro b le m s P ro d u c ts /s e rv ic e s f o u n d o n In te rn e t a re n o t v e ry in te re s ti n g D id n 't p a s s t h e c re d it c h e c k O th e r re a s o n s
Figure 7. Reasons for not purchasing goods and services online
The answer other reason clearly indicates the lack of attitudes towards electronic business – it is likely people prefer not to try at all and name other reasons. This point as well as unsecured shopping shows the lack of knowledge and distrust.
These data suggest that only a specific demographic segment is likely to be members and facilitate the development of electronic business. In essence this shows the limited possibilities of electronic business development and lack of technological and regulatory support. Harmonization
of these issues and targeting to the other potential segment would undoubtedly enhance the possibilities of electronic business development.
Another market players challenging electronic business are enterprises managers and businessmen as well. Despite of positive some expert opinion “E-commerce is growing rapidly in Lithuania”, this is very arguable issue. Taking into consideration the level of computerization, sales of PC the positive tendencies definitely can be identified, unless the technology creates the backbone for e-business development, but didn’t ensure the development itself. The level of computerization will not determine e-business development; business having purchased computers has not already been e-business [Damaskopoulos, Gatautis, 2003]. According to the information of Statistics Department, during the first half of 2002 6,7% of Lithuanian companies indicated that they sold goods (services) by Internet, 9,6% – purchased them online. Meanwhile, a survey, conducted by SIC Gallup Media showed, that 10 per cent of Lithuanian enterprises were intending to start or develop their business by Internet in the nearest future. An additional 16,7 percent of enterprises were planning to start or develop e-business as soon as favourable conditions are created.
The same tendencies are reflected in SIC Market Research report about enterprises websites. According to the survey about 35 presents enterprises have web site, 42,8 present don’t have and don’t intend to have and 16,4 percent intend to develop website in nearest 6 months. Only 35 percents of enterprises having web sites indicated they regularly update website. The update is performed by enterprise’s staff (43 percents) or by other company (28,9 percents). 20,2 percents of enterprises indicates website are updates irregularly.
Haven't and don't know if develop 5,8% Have web site 35,0% Haven't, but intend to develop in 6 months 16,4% Haven't and don't intend to develop 42,8%
Update is performed by other company 28,9% Updated irregularry 20,2% Update is performed by staff 43,2% Update is performed by friends 7,7%
Figure 8. Website usage between enterprises and Website maintenance between enterprises These data suggest that having technological potential business lack knowledge of electronic business for successful development. This shows the limited possibilities of electronic business development and lack of regulatory support. Harmonization of these issues and strengthening regulatory environment would undoubtedly facilitate the possibilities of electronic business development.
6. Conclusion
ICT is one of the driving forces in the transition toward a new economic system. However, ICT in itself is unlikely to lead the process of transformation in transition economies. One of the strategic challenges in these economies is how to construct sustainable electronic business that bridge civil society and the organizations in the public sector in ways that support the transition toward an ICT-enabled economic system. This paper has argued that the sustainable development of electronic business depends on substantial and coordinated changes on the level of business firms, market conditions, human recourses, and the culture and institutions of society.
The analysis of main factors affecting electronic business development presents several positive changes towards the development. Yet despite these changes the real situation shows that Lithuania is in the early stages of electronic business development. The divide between different factors positive influence and reality implies what missing factors cause such situation. The current situation implies that the critical factors that could drive the development of electronic business are missing a framework of interaction. The means aimed to strengthen and implement each of the factors should be facilitated and implemented in a harmonized and coordinated way. The implementation as well depends on different government levels of decision-making– national, regional and local. Actions taken to facilitate electronic business development should be harmonized and coordinated between these bodies. The future of electronic business depends heavily on coordination of policy actions on each of these levels, because the lack of coordination results in disjointed and incomplete stimulation of electronic business development.
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