The attached prospectus for CommerceNet includes the following:
"Security mechanisms, including authentication and encryption,
supported within applications, including Mosaic, using RSA public
key cryptography. Public-key certification services will also be
provided to CommerceNet members."
Does anyone know any details of the proposed certification service?
-Rob-
---------------------------
From: services(_at_)commerce(_dot_)net
To: m23949(_at_)mwvm(_dot_)mitre(_dot_)org
Subject: CommerceNet Information
MIME-Version: 1.0
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii
CommerceNet, The First Large-Scale Market Trial of Electronic Commerce
on the Internet
Electronic Commerce on the Internet
The following is a scenario from the not-too-distant future...
Bill owns a small printed circuit board design company. His
four-engineer design group is located ten miles outside of Boulder
Creek in the Santa Cruz, California mountains. This morning, he
checked his electronic mail box on the Internet and found a message
from Irene, a design engineering manager at a large computer
company in San Jose. She asked him to look at a sensitive request
for quotation (RFQ) she had just posted. The RFQ was only open to
three firms, and the message was encrypted such that only those
three firms could read it.
After analyzing the RFQ, Bill again used the Internet to check for
current prices for the integrated circuits needed to build Irene's
board. He accessed several online catalogs for IC manufacturers
and made rough estimates of the cost of materials. With that
finished, there was one thing left: a sticky design issue he
didn't quite understand. He queried several engineers he knew at
Irene's company via the Internet as well as an engineer in
Amsterdam that he had met at COMDEX. The Amsterdam engineer
referred him to an article in a back issue of an electronics
association journal, which he promptly downloaded from the
journal's Internet forum.
After lunch, Bill prepared a quotation and sent it, encrypted, to
Irene. The bid was not only secret it was also a legally
binding offer. He mused about how his access to the Internet
enabled his company to get jobs that used to go only to the big
boys on the other side of the hill. His quotations were extremely
accurate; he could always look up the most up-to-date prices and
inventories via online catalogs. His designers were highly
efficient; they accessed the latest applications and utilities from
colleagues all over the world. And his cash flow was improved
because he could send invoices and receive remittances via the
Internet.
Irene, at the other end of the "electronics food chain," often
remarked about how using the Internet had helped her company's
profitability. The publications group cut printing costs by
putting their data sheets, catalogs and data books online. Her
engineering group could take advantage of independent board
designers; the other two firms bidding on her boards were in Oregon
and Taiwan.
The bottom line: for Bill and Irene, the Internet is easy to use
and secure. It provides access to services and information sources
around the globe. It is a commercial tool, as fundamental as a
spreadsheet or telephone, that they both need to stay competitive.
The Internet
An outgrowth of a government research project (ARPANET) begun in
the 1960's, the Internet was originally used by colleges,
universities and the government for research and development
purposes. It has since evolved to become "the network of
networks," interconnecting not just government and education, but a
large portion of the commercial business sector as well. Today,
the Internet's 20 million-plus users are connected by over 20,000
public and private networks reaching more than 140 countries around
the world. And, the Internet is growing at an average rate of 10%
a month.
Businesses run 63% of these networks. They use the Internet mostly
for electronic mail; in January 1994, IBM sent and received over
580,000 e-mail messages with individuals outside the company. To
be sure, this convenient communication via Internet makes doing
business easier; however, e-mail only scratches the surface of the
possibilities of electronic commerce.
Until now, the Internet has been a difficult place to do serious
business. Some of the reasons include: the lack of standard and
easy-to-use interfaces; the lack of secure means for transmitting
sensitive data or identifying users; and the lack of indexing and
search mechanisms that make it easy for users to find information.
A recent development, the World Wide Web (WWW, or "the Web"), and a
program called NCSA Mosaic, have made the Internet much easier to
use and navigate. Groups of Internet users developed WWW as a
general-purpose architecture for information retrieval. It
consists of disparate files and directories spread throughout the
Internet and is connected with hypertext links in a client-server
architecture. These links allow a user to connect directly and
transparently to computers that have needed information.
NCSA Mosaic is the most popular hypermedia browser for accessing
the World Wide Web. Developed by the National Center for
Supercomputing Applications (NCSA) at the University of Illinois at
Urbana-Champaign, NCSA Mosaic is available free for UNIX*,
Macintosh( and Windows* platforms, and supports full multimedia
presentations (audio, video, text and graphics) as well as
electronic forms. Some call Mosaic the Internet's "killer
application" because of its sophisticated hyperlink capabilities:
users can point and click on designated words and graphics in a
document and transparently, via the WWW, connect with the computer
on which the referenced information is stored.
For example, a user with a Mosaic interface sees a reference to
"Vatican Library." The user clicks on the name and connects
automatically to the Vatican Library server via WWW. Before the
WWW, the user had to type a myriad of arcane, idiosyncratic
Internet addresses and commands.
What is CommerceNet?
CommerceNet is a consortium of Northern California
technology-oriented companies and organizations whose goal is to
create an electronic marketplace where companies transact business
spontaneously over the Internet. CommerceNet will stimulate the
growth of a communications infrastructure that will be easy-to-use,
oriented for commercial use, and ready to expand rapidly. The net
results for businesses in this region will be lower operating costs
and a faster dissemination of technological advancements and their
practical applications.
The CommerceNet marketplace will support all business services that
normally depend on paper-based transactions. Buyers will browse
multimedia catalogs, solicit bids, and place orders. Sellers will
respond to bids, schedule production, and coordinate deliveries. A
wide array of value-added information services will spring up to
bring buyers and sellers together. These services will include
specialized directories, broker and referral services, vendor
certification and credit reporting, network notaries and
repositories, and financial and transportation services.
CommerceNet will provide an integrated set of services from a
single source, including:
% Affordable, high quality Internet connectivity (through BARRNet)
using a variety of options including T1, 56K, Frame Relay and ISDN.
Many are now available; others will roll out during the remainder
of 1994.
% Easy access to user interface and networking software and
registration forms for CommerceNet access.
% Software tools for providers that make it easy to put up
interactive CommerceNet services on any Internet host.
% Simple point-and-click access to all CommerceNet services,
including a variety of specialized directories, using an enhanced
version of Mosaic.
% Security mechanisms, including authentication and encryption,
supported within applications, including Mosaic, using RSA public
key cryptography. Public-key certification services will also be
provided to CommerceNet members.
CommerceNet eliminates data and transmission security issues
because there are no remote logins and passwords are not exchanged
in the clear. In addition, authentication, authorization, and data
encryption applications made available on CommerceNet will let
buyers and sellers safely exchange sensitive information such as
credit card numbers and bid amounts, sign legally enforceable
contracts, maintain audit trails, and make or receive network
payments through cooperating financial institutions.
The CommerceNet Consortium
The CommerceNet Consortium is a non-profit corporation operating
under a matching funds grant from the United States government's
Technology Reinvestment Project (TRP). CommerceNet was awarded $6
million over three years, which is to be matched by contributions
from member companies and state and local agencies.
The TRP was created as part of President Clinton's program to
revitalize the economy, create jobs, and help American industry
remain competitive and on the cutting edge of technology. The TRP
is sponsored by the Defense Department's Advanced Research Projects
Agency (ARPA), the Department of Commerce's National Institute of
Standards and Technology (NIST), the National Science Foundation
(NSF), the Department of Energy (DOE) and the National Aeronautics
and Space Administration (NASA).
CommerceNet was proposed to the TRP council in 1993 by the core
development team of the CommerceNet Consortium, which includes
BARRNet, Enterprise Integration Technologies (EIT) and Stanford
University's Center for Information Technology (CIT). On November
24, 1993, the government announced the award to CommerceNet in the
second round of TRP funding for 55 projects (out of 2,850
submitted) that promote the commercial use of defense-related
technology. CommerceNet is one of those programs.
The Consortium is comprised of the core development team,
sponsoring organizations, and industry participants. The core team
is responsible for developing and operating CommerceNet and
securing its funding, and oversees the day-to-day management of
CommerceNet.
Sponsoring organizations include Smart Valley Inc., Joint
Venture:Silicon Valley Network and the State of California's Office
of Strategic Technology. Initial CommerceNet participants include
leading companies from Silicon Valley's semiconductor, electronics
and computer industries, and their customers and suppliers around
the world.
Under the CommerceNet structure, the Consortium's Board of
Directors subcontracts program management and technical development
to the principal performing organizations: BARRNet, EIT and
Stanford CIT. The Board meets quarterly and works closely with an
Industry Steering Committee that represents the interests of the
Consortium membership.
The Industry Steering Committee sets membership criteria and
provides priorities for development requirements. CommerceNet's
executive director, Cathy J. Medich, reports to the organization's
Board of Directors. Allan M. Schiffman, Chief Technical Officer of
EIT, serves as CommerceNet's Principal Architect.
How CommerceNet Will Benefit Business
CommerceNet's founders and supporters believe that the new
electronic marketplace will dramatically improve the productivity
and competitiveness of its participants. It will provide access to
an online global marketplace with millions of customers and
thousands of products and services; and, it will provide
participating companies with new, more cost- and time-efficient
means for working with customers, suppliers and development
partners. CommerceNet will enable companies to:
% Shorten procurement cycles through online catalogs, ordering and
payment;
% Cut costs on both stock and manufactured parts through
competitive bidding;
% Shrink development cycles and accelerate time-to-market through
collaborative engineering and product implementation.
Participants are likely to use CommerceNet to provide online
catalogs and product literature to customers, suppliers,
distributors, and partners, and to conduct online ordering and
product data exchange. CommerceNet users will also be able to
request and provide competitive solicitations and bids, engage in
inter-company collaborative engineering, and access and integrate
product vendors and service suppliers for faster product time to
market.
For information technology providers, CommerceNet is an opportunity
to build Northern California's information infrastructure, to
influence the development of Internet technology and standards for
electronic commerce, and to participate in joint marketing efforts.
How CommerceNet Works
The CommerceNet server, the starting point for participation in
CommerceNet, provides users access to all CommerceNet-related
information and applications via a Mosaic interface as a part of
the World Wide Web. CommerceNet information is also available by
automated response to electronic mail requests.
The CommerceNet server stores information on the CommerceNet
organization; directories to participants, value-added third-party
services and Internet resources; member registration and
communications; and tutorials and examples. The server is also the
distribution center for CommerceNet software.
CommerceNet participants create "home pages," which are located on
each participating company's WWW server, and which serve as each
company's "virtual storefront" on the network. A participant's
home page will typically provide an overview of the organization as
well as point-and-click access to product or service information,
access to online catalogs, product order forms and so on. This
company home page would be reached by users either by name, or more
likely via a 'reference' link from the CommerceNet server's
directory pages, or even via a document reference elsewhere in the
World Wide Web perhaps from an online magazine article.
The Future of CommerceNet
The CommerceNet core team employs state-of-the-art Internet
technology and intends to stay on the leading edge of development
through an aggressive R&D program at Stanford CIT. Future services
being explored include shopping agents that can search through
catalogs and negotiate deals; collaboration tools for distributed
work teams that support both real-time interaction and videomail;
natural language search and retrieval techniques for large,
distributed information bases; and format translation services that
enable engineering organizations to exchange product data even when
they adhere to different standards.
In five years, organizers hope to achieve the following goals:
% 3,000 organizations using CommerceNet routinely for business
transactions and technical collaboration;
% 300 organizations providing information services through
CommerceNet;
% 30 local, state and federal projects in Northern California
using
CommerceNet as a common infrastructure;
% 30 profitable local businesses providing the CommerceNet
infrastructure with computer products, telecommunication services,
software and consulting.
CommerceNet organizers believe that the majority of companies and
organizations in the U.S. may conduct business via the Internet in
five years. CommerceNet is a step towards a de facto National
Information Infrastructure capable of linking up with other
electronic commerce projects in places such as Boston, Austin, and
the University of Illinois. Potentially, a CommerceNet-like
infrastructure could support other national efforts in the areas of
education, health care and digital libraries.
Key Participants in CommerceNet
BARRNet
Founded in 1987 as an original component of the National Science
Foundation Network (NSFNET), BARRNet provides the information
infrastructure supporting research, education and economic
development in Northern California. As a founding partner of
CommerceNet, BARRNet offers its suite of premier Internet services
as the basis for CommerceNet connectivity.
BARRNet has points of presence spanning Northern California, with
additional POPs planned for Southern California and Nevada in the
coming months. The organization's list of offerings includes: A
complete package of Internet connectivity services, from 14.4 kbps
IP connections, either dialup or dedicated line, to 56 kbps and
high-speed T1 connections; a low-cost, standalone Iserver* System;
and the High Security Firewall System.
With BARRNet connectivity to the Internet, subscribers make full
use of the expanding suite of TCP/IP protocols, including telnet,
ftp, nntp, http (Mosaic), gopher, wais, archie, POP mail, irc, ntp,
etc.
Enterprise Integration Technologies (EIT)
Enterprise Integration Technologies is an R&D and consulting
company specializing in software and services that help companies
do business on the Internet. EIT develops information
infrastructures for a broad range of programs in agile
manufacturing, concurrent engineering, and electronic commerce.
EIT is CommerceNet's principal architect, technology supplier, and
integrator. The company will also provide program management and
services to end users.
Stanford Center for Information Technology (CIT)
CIT specializes in the development and deployment of information
infrastructure technology. CIT is operated by Stanford University
in association with affiliated organizations from industry,
government and academia. CIT serves as a venue for pre-competitive
collaboration among its affiliates as well as a nursery for new
commercial ventures based on CIT's technology. CIT focuses its
efforts on Silicon Valley to ensure the continued technological
leadership of the region.
The work of CIT is vertically integrated with a significant amount
of effort devoted to each of the following areas: (1) research on
the principles underlying information technology; (2) development
of practical technology based on this research; and (3)
demonstrations and testbeds to illustrate and assess the strength
of this technology.
For information regarding how to participate in CommerceNet, call
or send e-mail to:
CommerceNet
459 Hamilton Avenue
Palo Alto, Calif. 94301
Phone: (415) 617-8790
Fax: (415) 617-1516
E-Mail: info(_at_)commerce(_dot_)net
URL (e.g., WWW) Address: http://www.commerce.net/
------------------------------------------------------------------------
-----
If you wish to obtain more information, please complete all entries on
the CommerceNet Information Form and mail the completed form to
more-info(_at_)commerce(_dot_)net(_dot_)
Name:__________________________________________________________________
Title:__________________________________________________________________
_
Company:_______________________________________________________________
Address:________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________
Phone:________________________________
Fax:__________________________________
Email
Address:________________________________________________________________
Type of organization: Business__ Non-Profit__ Organization__
Line of
business:_______________________________________________________________
_
Company
Size:___________________________________________________________________
=============================================================
CommerceNet
Info
CN Interest: Provider__ User__ Press__ Consultant__ INet VAS__
Interested in CommerceNet membership? No__ Yes__
=============================================================
Internet Connectivity
Current INet Access: None__ UNIX Dial-up__ Individ Wkstn/PC__
Single Host__
LAN: Ethernet__ LocalTalk__ Novell__ Other______________
Current INet use: None__ Email__ FTP__ WWW__
Interested in new or upgraded Internet connectivity? No__ Yes__
Interested in individual dial-up access Internet connectivity? No__
Yes__
Interested in dedicated Internet connectivity? No__ Yes___
(For a group of users or to provide a CommerceNet information service)
Interested in approximately what class of service:
Slow__ Average__ Premium__
14.4K 56K T1
(@ approximate cost: <$250/mo <$500/mo <$1200/mo)
Interested in managing own Internet services administration?
No__ Yes__