Different standards
Communicating dates
Times
Temperatures
Addresses
United States uses month/day/year format
Rest of world uses day/month/year
Different standards very costly
NASA lost spacecraft because of measurement unit discrepancy
European Article Number (EAN): barcode that includes an extra number to identify country
Universal Product Code (UPC): American standard without last extra number
Uniform Code Council (UCC): promoted use of European standard
Companies must adapt ISs to de facto (formal) standards
Global Trade Item Numbers (GTINs): large enough to identify much larger set of items
Support global supply chains
Major push for using RFID tags
Legal Barriers
Countries have different laws
Affects global business in general
Poses challenges
International transfer of data
Free speech
Location of legal proceedings
Privacy laws
Respect for privacy in international business is unresolved challenge
Majority of democratic nations protect individual privacy
Laws reflect difference in approach to issue of privacy
Data protection laws described by three criteria
Apply to private or public sector
Manual or automated data
Concern human beings or legal entities
US privacy laws
Both public and private
Mostly encompass manual and computerized
European Union practices may conflict with U.S. practices
Personal data collected only for specified purposes
Personal data must be given consent to be processed
Collecting organizations must identify themselves
People have right to object to processing of personal data
American companies busy collecting data for marketing
Discrepancy between European and American approaches prevents unrestricted flow of information
EU directive just a framework
Safe Harbor: arrangement for U.S. companies complying with EU directive to trade
Applicable law
Free speech laws different in other countries
Impacts what can or cannot be displayed online
Other laws
Gambling
Auctioning
Sale of alcohol and drugs
Different global regions require policies for work and information systems
Teleconferencing available most of day
Sometimes 24 hours per day
Allow employees from different time zones to discuss problems
Teams in support centers may work shifts
Managers must be aware of incorrect time stamping
Systems at both locations can be designed to record local times of both locations
Or record single time (company headquarters)
Companies using Web for business must accommodate non-English speaking audiences
Companies must tailor to local preferences
Must be aware of cultural differences and payment preferences
Tariff and legal issues
Linguistic, cultural, economic, and political challenges must be addressed
Laws governing collection of data in United States and European Union are different
Incompatible data privacy laws
Restricted flow of personal data between United States and EU
Safe Harbor arrangement enables EU to do business with US
Old legal approach of territorial jurisdiction inadequate
Too much information communicated and business conducted on Internet
Free speech and consumer litigation of e-tailers brought need for legal reform for cyberspace
