Souq.com is the leading online platform in the Arab world where there is free trade. The revenue model of www.souq.com leans towards both the commercial and the retail sectors. Since its establishment, it is today the largest online shopping mall in the Arab world. A large number of suppliers enable Souq.com to provide a variety of products to consumers. The company generates by selling numerous product varieties to clients. Some of the product categories that the company deals with include; electronics, baby items, perfumes and fragrances, phones and accessories, etc. The company offers several advantages to its clients including; free listing, marketing support, logistic support and a secure payment platform.
Dubizzle.com is an online advertising company with its revenue stream coming from classified advertising. The website targets advertisers who aim to reach influential groups of young individuals who are well off and who can afford the lavish UAE lifestyles. Advertisers can sell anything on the site including; expensive cars, real estates, furniture, household appliances, and even venues to places out of town. Dubizzle.com depends highly on the web-traffic to sell advertising space. Such space usually holds different types of business advertisements including careers and job vacancies which also happen to revenue streams. With such a revenue model, dubbizle.com thrives in a competitive world with enough revenue to guarantee business continuity ad upkeep. Dubbizle.com prides itself in a dedicated customer support team that manually checks every ad. At the same time, round-the-clock support ensures safety of all ads published.
Another website, dailymotion.com, derives its revenue by using a shared-revenue type of online business model. The website streams hundreds of videos that are commercial-break free. With this website, everyone who uploads a video has a chance to earn. However, recruitment to the site is optional. Dailymotion.com implements a mass revenue-funded model. With such type of revenue model, everybody involved gets a share of the revenues. The website emphasizes on inspiring web content through the upload of videos to the site in an effort to maximize revenue. A sales model is in place to ensure the provision of online streaming services without the limitations of bandwidth and time factors. Ads posted on certain videos also provide another means of revenue generating method for the website through advertisement fees.
Site 1: http://www.dubaichamber.com/en/
The above is a website introduced by the government’s chamber of commerce in Dubai in an effort to inspire and stimulate the growth of information technology. The website handles e-commerce related issues while at the same time encouraging the development of online businesses. The website has avenues for supplier registration, health insurance and certificate verification. All such processes take place online via the internet that is quite an efficient way of doing things.
Site 2: http://www.dubaicustoms.gov.ae/en/Pages/default.aspx
The above website shows the use of e-commerce applications by Dubai Ports and Customs department. The e-government application system performs activities for different categories of people. For businesses, the system has the capabilities to clear customs, offer registration and licensing and also provide value added services. Such services include shipping payments, and guiding transport companies and cargo businesses to process customs documents and payments through the internet. For individuals, the application system can process clearance on personal effects. For travellers, the system can process customs duties and self-declaration of individuals. On a nutshell, the website is a perfect example of how UAE embraces emergent technologies for e-commerce related activities. The website also has an online platform for the department to respond to customs queries and provide statistical reports for free zone trade data.
Site 3: http://arxiv.org/abs/1105.6358
The above website highlights the objective of UAE to realize the vision of e-government transformation. It is apparent that the UAE government has focus related to providing basic services via the internet. The government offices remain open to the public. However, basic transactions like payment of bills, simple queries and renewal of licenses, take place from the comfort of the consumer’s home. The government also has intentions to use the internet to reduce paperwork as well as automate the system so as to lower the cost of labor.
Site: http://www.webologyworld.com/portfolio/carrefour-2/
The above website is the world’s second largest retailer which is an online website. The website seeks to be an online hypermarket as an independent and stand-alone site. The website boasts of revenues adding up to 20% of all internet retailing in UAE. It incorporates tools for powerful ecommerce transactions to attain a competitive edge in the world of e-commerce. Over the years, the website grew through phases starting with electronics and home appliances. Increased automation has also greatly contributed to the success of the website. The use of electronic data interchange is also among the technologies that put the company a notch ahead of other websites in the same industry. The system also has the capabilities of holding information electronically for reference of future transactions.
Site: http://www.luluwebstore.com/
The website is an exceptional description of a business-to-business e-commerce application based in the UAE. It is a powerful e-commerce solution whose main objective is to create value for online stores and businesses by using innovative e-commerce solutions. The most powerful features from the website include; scalability to accommodate large online retailers, a payment integration system, and a customizable user interface. It also includes advanced e-commerce features such as promotions, discounts and loyalty. The website allows for subscription in an effort to improve business communication transactions in the field of e-commerce. The check-out process accommodates the use of electronic funds transfers as a payment option. Such has the effect of optimizing electronic payment systems from carrying cash in bulk to a cashless world where money transfer takes place over the air.
The act of a company copying the contents of the advertisement from dubbizle.com and pasting such contents on their website creates an issue of ethics. The ethical issue that arises may have different ways of approaching it which include the following:
The utilitarian rule: the implication is that the act will become ethical if it generates the ultimate good for the majority. The utilitarian rule does not take into consideration the concerns of a specific act, but rather the appropriateness of the act using a different method. As such, the utilitarian approach involves identifying the best rule of conduct. The rule with the best complete significance emerges as the best rule. In the current case scenario, consideration ought to be on the extent of harm or benefit to different stakeholders by the act of copying contents of the advertisement. The option with the highest benefits or least harm qualifies as the action taken.
The moral rights rule: this dictates that any ethical decision must uphold and safeguard the basic rights and freedoms of people. According to this approach, moral ethics comprises of those actions that do not interfere with the rights of other. The rule, therefore, has grounds on the opinion of doing well to others. For the case at hand, the decision must have grounds on whether the company that copies the contents of the advertisement in dubbizle.com interferes with its basic rights.
The justice rule: according to this rule, any ethical decision should allocate benefits and damage among people in a reasonable, unbiased and independent manner. The implication is that, before making a decision, managers must weigh different courses of action. The decision, therefore, follows the course that deems situations as just and equitable to all stakeholders. As such, the managers must avoid the act of copying advertisement content if it harms some stakeholders or creates a situation whereby some stakeholders are likely to rip more benefits than others.
The practical rule: this defines an ethical decision as one in which a manager does not shy away from communicating to people externally. Such is with the simple reason that the average person in the society might consider the decision as objectionable. The approach normally applies in situations where there is a conflict in the rights and objectives of certain participants. The decision, therefore, warrants classification of being ethical if it is within the acceptable standards of the society. There is also the consideration of ethics in a decision if the decision maker is willing to communicate action to all concerned parties. The approval of the action by the participant also plays an important role in the classification of a decision as ethical.
References
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[3] Gobry, P, "Here's the Real Story of the Dailymotion Orange Deal". Retrieved November, 2014 Available: http://www.businessinsider.com/dailymotion-orange-deal-2011-1
[4] Jahan, R, "Dubizzle Sizzles - arabiangazette.com". Retrieved January, 2014 Available: http://www.arabiangazette.com/dubizzle-sizzles/
[5] O. Ferrell and J. Fraedrich, Business ethics: Ethical decision making and cases, New York: Cengage Learning, 2014.
[6] Weerakkody, Vishanth. Technology enabled transformation of the public sector: advances in e-government. Hershey, PA: Information Science Reference, 2012. Print.
[7] “United Arab Emirates Federal Customs Authority”. Retrieved November, 2014 Available: http://www.dubaicustoms.gov.ae/en/Pages/default.aspx
[8] Ali, A, “An innovative Approach for E-Government Transformation”. Retrieved November, 2014 Available http://arxiv.org/abs/1105.6358
