Analyses and studies show that using e-commerce tools brings very significant benefits, primarily in the form of financial and time savings. Some estimates indicate an average 10 percent reduction in the prices of purchased products or services (which in specific cases can exceed 50 percent) and up to 80 percent time savings in the preparation, handling, and execution of commercial transactions. Experience and practice confirm such high savings. It is therefore not surprising that a few years ago, analysts predicted that the global e-commerce market would grow at a rate of several times per year. In Poland, the profits of e-commerce solution providers are not very high, primarily due to the need for continuous investment and refinement of the target operating strategy. Attempting to assess e-commerce in Poland is difficult because specific figures regarding revenues and turnover are often kept confidential, so most data in this area are only estimates.
Facts and figures
The turnover of the entire e-commerce sector in Poland in 2003 was estimated at 3 billion PLN and was twice as high as the year before. This was the first year in which some specialized electronic platforms out of the approximately 70 existing ones—after 2-3 years from their inception—showed their first profits. The largest share in electronic commerce is held by the B2B sector, i.e., platforms (also known as exchanges) handling electronic trade between enterprises and institutions. In Poland, there are about 30 such exchanges, including both vertical platforms, i.e., serving customers of a specific industry, and horizontal ones—for all market participants and with a very wide spectrum of goods being traded.
The article comes from the magazine “e-Fakty” 4/2005.