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U.S., China Jointly Pursue E-Commerce
by William New
The Commerce Department is involved in several initiatives with China to develop e-commerce in and between the two countries.
Commerce and the Chinese Ministry of Information Industries, for instance, are co-hosting a bilateral seminar on telecommunications and information technology standards Aug. 14 in Beijing, as part of a U.S. program to acquaint Chinese officials with such standards. Then the E-Commerce Steering Group of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) will address online consumer-protection issues at its meeting in Dalian, China, on Aug. 20.
While China and Canada head the e-commerce group, Michelle O'Neill, a Commerce official who heads the U.S. delegation, will report on the action plan for small and medium-sized businesses. The United States also will lead a discussion on privacy, focused on the protection of personal information in commercial transactions, approaches to personal data protection in other regions, and activities for APEC.
The APEC e-commerce group works on legal and regulatory issues. It is preparing a survey on consumer-protection regimes and developing an online database on approaches to consumer protection, according to Commerce officials. Last year, it completed a work plan for small business and e-commerce, which helps small businesses assess their IT needs and provides a road map for using IT with customers and suppliers. The group distributed 10,000 copies worldwide, officials said.
In the Aug. 20 meeting, the steering group will review the status of e-commerce initiatives in other forums. Participants also will discuss paperless trading, the implications of the Hague Convention on Jurisdiction and Foreign Judgments in Civil and Commercial Matters, and the e-signatures initiative of the U.N. Commission on International Trade Law (UNCITRAL). An Aug. 19 workshop will examine how APEC can benefit from private-sector work.
But the Joint Commission on Commerce and Trade, a Cabinet-level effort between Commerce and the Chinese government, is perhaps the best forum for bilateral trade promotion talks between the two nations. The panel has an information industries subgroup, which is led by O'Neill and her Chinese counterpart.
"The JCCT information industry subgroup provides a vehicle to engage the Chinese on a range of issues and is an important avenue for helping U.S. suppliers tap the world's fastest-growing telecom and IT market," O'Neill told National Journal's Technology Daily.
The IT Work Plan
The two sides annually sign a work program, but in 2001, it was not signed until April, in part because of the transition to a new U.S. administration and in part because China wanted a "more robust" agenda, Commerce officials said. The JCCT meets once a year and is expected to do so this fall. The subgroup also meets once a year, though there are U.S. efforts to get a second meeting in August to get an earlier jump on the work program than last year, officials said.
The IT subgroup seeks to promote commercial relations and bilateral trade in computer equipment, software, electronic components, instrumentation, and information services. Commerce said that goal will be accomplished by exchanging data related to information technology and "resolving commercial issues of concern to IT firms" in both countries.
The 2001 work plan states that the parties "agree to identify, develop and support trade events ... and similar events, that foster trade and commercial ties between the United States and China." Both parties also "agree to name their development prospects and possible trade opportunities in the information industry field." In addition, they agree to provide support for those activities.
The plan identified a series of events, including a Chinese delegation to the PCIA GlobalXChange meeting in Los Angeles on Sept. 10-25, the second U.S.-China Telecom Regulatory and Policy Forum in Beijing in October, and the Internet Data Center/Application Service Provider Seminar in Beijing in December.
The IT subgroup accentuates the public-private-sector partnership. In April, O'Neill and Lauren Hall, executive vice president of the Software and Information Industry Association, led six e-commerce companies on a mission to Hong Kong, Beijing, Shanghai and Guangzhou in China.
In other Chinese news, Reuters reported in late July that the nation had closed nearly 2,000 Internet cafes and had ordered another 6,000 to suspend operations. The move is part of a government sweep that has led to the inspection of more than 50,000 Internet cafes or bars since April, the news service said.
NAFTA Trade Ministers Clarify Investor Provisions
The three trade ministers of the North American Free Trade Agreement on July 31 realized a long-standing effort by Canada to clarify special protections for companies. The clarification seeks to limit the use of unique investor-state rules, which allow companies to sue for damages if a NAFTA government takes an action unfavorable to the company's investment, such as enacting an environmental law.
Powell Promises Pacific Push
Secretary of State Colin Powell has vowed that the United States "will remain engaged" in the Pacific. Powell made his comments after he and Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld met with government counterparts in Canberra, Australia.
"We are pleased to be here representing the new Bush administration, giving solid evidence to the proposition that the United States is a Pacific nation, has been a Pacific nation and will remain engaged in this region politically, diplomatically and with the presence of our military forces," Powell said on July 30.
Powell said officials broached the subject of trade in their meeting. "We talked about the Australian proposal for a free-trade agreement with the United States," he said. "I reassured the foreign minister and the prime minister that the United States would give that proposal serious consideration in the days and months ahead."
IT Companies Cited For Good Practices In Latin America
A new report by the Business Roundtable (BRT), a group of top U.S. executives, praises the business practices of several high-tech firms operating in Latin America.
The report, entitled Corporate Social Responsibility in Latin America: Practices by U.S. Companies, singled out Sun Microsystems, Honeywell, ITT Industries and others. It touted the companies' distribution of their codes of conduct in a variety of ways, including via company intranet and Internet sites, "often translated into Spanish or Portuguese."
The report was issued to boost efforts to persuade Americans of the positive social effects of free-trade agreements. BRT is a strong supporter of granting the president trade-negotiating authority, which is expected to be a top issue in Congress when lawmakers return from their August recess.
Europeans Schedule E-Government Conference
The European Conference on E-Government will be held at Trinity College in Dublin, Ireland, on Sept. 27-28. Participants will discuss the integration of government information systems, digital procurement, Web democracy, Internet infrastructure issues, online dispute resolution and security, and strategies of political Web sites, among other things.
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