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internet-and-e-commerce-industry-armenia
Today, the country we pay attention to is a landlocked mountainous country in the Caucasus, Armenia. Armenia, that represents a former republic of the Soviet Union, is bordered by Turkey to the west, Georgia to the north, the de facto independent Nagorno-Karabakh Republic and Azerbaijan to the east, and Iran and the Azerbaijani exclave of Nakhchivan to the south. Interestingly,
Armenia is a current member of more than 40 international organizations, including the United Nations, the Council of Europe, the Asian Development Bank, the Commonwealth of Independent States, the World Trade Organization, the Organization of the Black Sea Economic Cooperation, and La Francophonie. The country is also a member of the CSTO military alliance, and also participates in NATO’s Partnership for Peace programme. Armenia is also an observer member of the Eurasian Economic Community and the Non-Aligned Movement
As for the Armenian telecom market, itթ§Չ-Չ§s still small, but developing at present. Thus the volume of Internet subscribers, for instance, has only reached 17%, reflecting a relatively low level of broadband penetration in comparison with many other countries of Asia and Europe.
Actually, the telecommunications sector in Armenia has experienced sharp swings in development over the last two decades. The telecom sector slipped into decline following the collapse of the former Soviet Union in the 1990s, with the fixed-line teledensity falling dramatically, that also reflected the prevailing socio-economic instability within the country and the region. However, the most significant factor of slump in development was that the country initially failed to embrace any vigorous reform in the telecom sector.
Thus far, despite steadily improving economic conditions as the country underwent economic reform, the telecoms sector was slow to respond. Besides, with the most damaging effects of the global financial crisis also hurting Armenia in 2009, demand for telecom services in Armenia slumped.
2010 year looks promising for the deployment of telecommunication services, including Internet. Thus far improved national economy is expected to see a modest recovery in the telco market as the whole. Major structural issues have been addressed in the Armenian telecom sector.
The major national Internet services provider is ArmenTel, that was granted exclusive rights to the provision of all telecommunications services in Armenia until 2013.
The other popular operator, launched its network in mid-2005 after being awarded a license from the government is K-Telecom, thatթ§Չ-Չ§s delivering its services under the brand name VivaCell-MTC.
Armentel is only fiber optic connection to the Internet enters Armenia through Georgia (via Marneuli) that then connects to the rest of the Internet via an undersea fiber-optic cable in the Black Sea. Armenia is also connected to the Trans-Asia-Europe (TAE) fiber-optic cable system via Georgia, which runs along the railroad from Poti to Tbilisi to the Armenian border near Marneuli. At Poti, the TAE cable connects to the undersea Georgia-Russia system KAFOS which then connects to the Black Sea Fiber Optic Cable System. The BSFOCS is co-owned by Armentel.
The most popular way of Internet connection in Armenia is dial-up due to very high prices of other types of internet access. The average cost of an hour dial-up internet access is about 48 cents, plus 20 cents for using phone line.
ADSL represents the other way of Internet connection in the country, offered mostly by offered by Beeline, Cornet, Arminco.
As for WiMAX connection, Cornet launched a nationwide network in the capital, Yerevan, and 18 biggest cities of Armenia, using 802.16e protocol in the 3.6-3.8 GHz frequency diapason, delivering 27 Mbit/sec speed.
In turn, Icon Communications in a move to design, deploy and maintain a commercial WiMAX 802.16e-2005 (Rev-e) network in Armenia has chosen Alcatel-Lucent.
The other Internet services providers, operating successfully on the Armenian telecom market are:
թ§Չ-Թ§ ADC (Armenian Datacom Company)
թ§Չ-Թ§ Arminco – offers a wide range of Internet services
թ§Չ-Թ§ Beeline
թ§Չ-Թ§ CrossNet
թ§Չ-Թ§ Dolphin
թ§Չ-Թ§ FastClick
թ§Չ-Թ§ Hi-TECH Gateway
թ§Չ-Թ§ Netsys թ§Չ-Չ delivers dial-up, DSL and cable links
թ§Չ-Թ§ Orange
թ§Չ-Թ§ Ucom
թ§Չ-Թ§ Web.am թ§Չ-Չ is the largest ISP in Armenia that represents Broadband Wireless Internet Service Provider. Mainly provides radio-modem connection to the Internet
թ§Չ-Թ§ Parev.net թ§Չ-Չ represents not only Armenian internet service provider, but also Armenian portal.թԹ
թ§Չ-Թ§ Xter.net – is a fast-growing ISP offering a wide spectrum of quality Internet services in Armenia, including dial-up and leased-line Internet access, web hosting.
թ§Չ-Թ§ G-Net Armenia
թ§Չ-Թ§ Intertel թ§Չ-Չ delivers cable Internet, DSL and wireless connection, Dial-UP, web hosting and other Internet solutions.
թ§Չ-Թ§ Infocom – connects governmental organizations and banking networks in Yerevan
թ§Չ-Թ§ SIUNY.AM
թ§Չ-Թ§ AMS – offers internet and network services to Telecom and Internet service providers
Internet country code top-level domain (ccTLD) for Armenia is .am, administered by AMNIC. The registry for .am is operated by ISOC-AM (Internet Society of Armenia), the local chapter of the Internet Society.
Registrations under the .am domain are permitted directly at second level.
.am domain name often suffers from domain hacks due to it being a mnemonic for AM radio (like other similar ccTLD: .fm, .tv, .cd, .dj and .mu). The domain-hacked name i.am has also been used for a popular hosting service, although it (and similar “two-letter word” hacks) is now owned by a third-party registration business.
Importantly, apart from ISOC-AM, supporting the development of Internet related services in the country; one more organization also actively prompts ICT progress in the country – Armenian Freenet. Freenet.am provides free Internet services to individuals, as well as non-profit, education and research organizations, State and other institutions in a move to promote the development of the information technologies and national information infrastructure in Armenia, delivering free e-mail service, free webhosting service and free dial-up access service. The organization, currently supervised by ISOC-AM, was created in the framework of United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) Armenia Internet Project in 1997.
So, letթ§Չ-Չ§s now turn to e-commerce sector of the country. Itթ§Չ-Չ§s important to note at first, there is a great potential for development of e-commerce in the country, though there is still a lack for the necessary incentives.
Nevertheless, progress forges ahead. And Armenia has been at the crossroads of becoming an electronic nation of the 21st century, developing its ICT sector as a principal segment of the overall national economy.
The main obstacle, hampering the deployment of e-commerce in the country is the problem of cash and non-cash payments, as with cash commerce the income can be hidden and tax payments avoided.
Meantime, Armenian government is actively realizing a strategy to build a national secure high-speed backbone communications network that will support an evolving and diverse range of e-Government and e-commerce applications. These are supposed to be supported by a nationwide secure system for all types of transactions, including financial.
Besides, the Government of Armenia and its Ministry of Economy have been proactively working out and promoting initial projects supporting e-Government implementation. E-Government represents a complex project that will be a strong integrating force for the transformation of the Armenian Government from the 20th to 21st Century.
As for the e-payment systems used widely in the country, two of them were launched several years ago, both oriented to Armenian Dram.
One of them – DramCash is based on PayCash, admittedly the most safe and reliable payment technology. DramCash represents a protected network of client software known as internet wallet. The user can download an internet wallet on his PC or flash card free of charge from the operator site. The whole registration takes no more than five minutes. PayCash is also applied by YandexMoney (Russia), Cyphermint (USA), IntenetMoney (Ukraine). DramCash will let Armenia-based users do shopping in internet stores, to pay for mobile phone, internet, cable TV services in drams. The company also provides for bill payment schemes. 
Since 2003 DramCash has attained a universal format of cooperation with the multi-currency Yandex- Money portals this allowing Armenian buyers to pay for Russian goods and services in e-drams. e-dram has been made “convertible” into any other currency of PayCash. The discussions over technical aspect of e-dram conversion into Web-Money, Egold, EPort are currently going out.
Thus far, the other e-payment system available is EDram. This quite different system represents a unique complex of the best features of its Western and Russian analogues. EDram money is absolutely virtual and noncash. The 
customer buys a prepaid EDram card certifying his right to do shopping on the internet for a definite sum. These cards can be used for paying one’s bills, such as gas, water and electricity. Soon it will be possible to use them in restaurants, CD shops and other public facilities.
At a first view, Armenia seems to be underdeveloped in terms of ICT and e-commerce progress. However, more thorough examination shows the country, to have a great potential in this sphere that is being developed and supported strongly by the government. Moreover, Armenia strives to become an electronic nation of the 21st century.
ecommerce-journal.com
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