The European e-Business Report The European e ... - empirica

The European E-Business Report 2005
Similar state-of-play in e-business in advanced economies
Most e-business data indicate that the maturity of ICT adoption and e-commerce activity among
enterprises is at a similar stage in all major economies. The percentage of enterprises' total turnover
from e-commerce, for example, appears to have reached similar levels in Europe (EU-25), the USA
and Australia with about 7-10% in each of these economies. 46 This indicates that the significance of e-
business activity for sales transactions is comparable, at least on the aggregate level.
However, as argued in the summary box below, gaps are more pronounced when comparing
individual EU Member States. Eurostat reports that enterprises from the EU-25 make 8.6% of their
total turnover from e-commerce. 47 Figures vary considerably between Member States. For Greece, for
example, Eurostat reports a share of 1.6% of turnover, for Poland 2.8%. In contrast, shares are
highest for Ireland (20%), the UK (13.7%), Denmark, Finland, Sweden and Germany.
Exhibit 1.8-6: Main conclusions on the performance of EU enterprises in e-business
• Head-to-head: On average, EU enterprises are head-to-head with their counterparts in other
advanced economies in terms of electronic business activity.
• Gaps within the EU: However, gaps in e-business adoption within the European Union
(between Member States) are clearly more pronounced than on aggregate level in
international benchmarks, that is between firms from the EU-25 and the USA, Australia or
Japan (and others). Of course, the same observation could be made for other large
economies, notably for the USA, where digital divides between states or regions also exist.
o EU countries as international benchmark: Firms from those EU Member States
which are most advanced in their information society development (the Nordic
countries in particular) are not only 'e-leaders' within the EU, but constitute
international benchmarks of ICT infrastructure adoption and e-business activity.
o Major EU economies aligned with international development: Many EU countries
are well aligned with the international state-of-play in e-business. This holds true for
some of the major economies in the EU, for example the UK, Germany, the
Netherlands and Spain. For France and Italy, results are mixed; some indicators
point at a lower adoption of e-business activity.
o Digital divide concerns mostly the 'third tier': ICT and e-business adoption is
comparatively low among firms from EU Member States which constitute the least
advanced group in information society development. This group includes some of the
new EU Member States, Greece and Portugal.
• Cultural similarities reflected in e-business activity? International findings on e-business
activity are strikingly comparable in particular for Europe (EU-25), the USA, Canada and
Australia. Results for Japan and South Korea suggest some differences in specific areas, 48
notwithstanding that the overall dynamic is still similar. The same observation could be made
for countries within the EU, where Member States with a similar culture show comparable
patterns in e-business adoption.
46
47
48
Sources: Eurostat (EU); ABS-BUIT 2003/4 (AUS); US Census Bureau 2005 (USA).
Eurostat survey on ICT use by enterprises (2004). Data for this indicator are available on the Eurostat website
http://epp.eurostat.cec.eu.int/portal/page?_pageid=0,1136195,0_45572097&_dad=portal&_schema=PORTAL
(downloaded in July 2005). Percentages relate to the base of enterprises with at least 10 employees and
using computers.
For example, the wider use of customer-facing e-commerce activity in South Korea, compared to e-
procurement, is not to be found in any of the other countries.
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