computer science

Ubiquitous commerce

Ubiquitous commerce is a computer science topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand Ubiquitous commerce rather than just read about it. In short: Ubiquitous Commerce also known as U-Commerce, u commerce or uCommerce (not 'U.Commerce'), refers to a variety of goods and/or services. Sometimes, it is used to refer to the wireless, continuous communication and exchange of data and information between and among retailers, customers, and systems (e.g., applications) regardless of location, devices used, or time of day.

Key takeaways

Ubiquitous commerce belongs to computer science; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect Ubiquitous commerce to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of Ubiquitous commerce from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

Ubiquitous Commerce also known as U-Commerce, u commerce or uCommerce (not 'U.Commerce'), refers to a variety of goods and/or services. Sometimes, it is used to refer to the wireless, continuous communication and exchange of data and information between and among retailers, customers, and systems (e.g., applications) regardless of location, devices used, or time of day. Sometimes, U-Commerce is taken as the generic term for all business transactions through or by means of information and communications technology (ICT).

Core Concepts According to Richard T. Watson, U-Commerce includes four major features:

Ubiquitous = represents the ability to be connect at any time and in any place as well as the integration of human-computer interaction into most devices and processes, e.g. household objects. Uniqueness = stands for the unique identification of each customer or user regarding his identity, current context, needs and location resulting in an individual service. Universal = is related to everyone’s devices which can be used multifunctional and as well as universal –you will always be connected no matter of your place. Unison = constitutes the data integration across applications and devices to provide users consistent and fully access to required information independent of device and location. The term unison also relates to fully synchronised devices at any time.

Technologies U-Commerce is described as the evolution of E-Commerce and M-Commerce also combining the areas of V-commerce, Television-Commerce (T-commerce) as well as Silent-Commerce (S-Commerce). Ubiquitous Commerce is thus based on various ICT components. These technologies were driving forces for the evolution to business transactions at any time and in any place and so they will be in the future:

Internet as the fundamental technology and source mobile data services regarding M-Commerce which are especially Wireless LAN, UMTS, HSDPA and in the future 4G / WiMAX TV technologies/add-ons like Teletext and increasingly IPTV technologies enhancing the communication of devices (EDI, XML, Web service) In addition, there are also technologies regarding the concept of Ubiquitous Computing which are and will be the main driving forces for the Ubiquitous Commerce. These are mainly the following:

technologies of M2M communication, which include some of the technologies mentioned above methods for the automatic identification and data capture (Auto-ID) e.g. GPS und RFID in the future also smart and self-organizing devices/systems and the related technologies like sensors, AI

Opportunities and threats In conjunction of the evolution of ubiquitous commerce in daily life and the approaching pervasiveness, a few opportunities as well as threats can be identified. Opportunities:

individual advertising and information supply e.g. based on location, time or mood of the customer high availability of services new potential revenue for supplier and accordingly new business models increasing mobility of customers and suppliers Threats:

information privacy and threatening of mass surveillance increasing requirements due to more diversity and quantity of devices and also energy consumption Information overload and likely complexity - also Big Data higher vulnerability to spoofing and security holes; e.g. as a result of more targets rising exclusion of the elderly based on requirements of higher technical skills "desocialization" of customer and supplier

See also Ubiquitous computing Electronic Business Electronic Commerce Mobile commerce V-commerce Machine-to-Machine

References

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with Ubiquitous commerce

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what Ubiquitous commerce claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In computer science, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to Ubiquitous commerce before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about Ubiquitous commerce ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of Ubiquitous commerce

In research: Ubiquitous commerce appears in computer science research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses Ubiquitous commerce in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: Ubiquitous commerce is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics E-commerce, Information technology management, Ubiquitous computing, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for Ubiquitous commerce outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

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How to study Ubiquitous commerce in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what Ubiquitous commerce means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain Ubiquitous commerce out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is Ubiquitous commerce in simple terms?

Why does Ubiquitous commerce matter?

Because it connects several computer science ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study Ubiquitous commerce?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on Ubiquitous commerce.