Internet Commerce and Consumers
NET205
Overview
Level of study: What does Undergraduate Level 2 mean?
Undergraduate Level 2
EFTSL: What does EFTSL mean?
0.125
Delivery Method: What does delivery method mean?
Fully Online
Prerequisites: What are the prerequisites?
Duration:
13 weeks
Government loans available:
FEE-HELP FEE-HELP
Domestic student fee:
$750.00 (AUD)
International student fee:
$975.00 (AUD)
Description
To be an internet user is, essentially, to be part of the economics of the internet, through innumerable commercial transactions and by being part of audiences sold advertising. In this unit, you will come to understand the dynamics of internet commerce, including the 'free' services that are part of the attention economy; you will also analyse the importance for the internet of an alternative economic form - the gift economy. Ultimately, you will understand how the internet might, within capitalism, be associated with economic rewards and risks; and how developments on the internet have altered business practices and approaches.
Further Information:
Assessment schedule subject to minor alteration.
Prerequisites
Equivalent units
You cannot enrol in this unit if you have successfully completed any of the following unit(s) because they are considered academically equivalent:
- NET25 — The Internet - Media Business
Recommended prerequisites
You are recommended to have completed the following unit(s) or have equivalent knowledge before starting this unit:
- NET102 — Internet and Everyday Life
- WEB101 — Web Communications
NET12 is the same as NET102 and NET11 is the same as WEB101.
Special Requirements
- Additional materials — Knowledge networking
- Broadband access
- Other special requirement — Web2.0
Assessment
- Assignment 1 — Software Review (20%)
- Assignment 2 — Team Project Report (50%)
- Assignment 3 — Individual Essay (30%)
Learning Outcomes
At the completion of this unit students will be able to:
- demonstrate understanding of the principles and practices which sustain internet commerce
- analyse specific commercial events and occurrences to explain the nature of internet economics
- demonstrate understanding of the way in which capitalism pervades the social and technological workings of the internet in global society
- assess critically the culture and practices of 'free' online labour, goods and services associated with internet.
Topics
This unit addresses the following topics.
| Number | Topic |
|---|---|
| 1 | Internet business basics |
| 2 | Network economy: it's all about networking |
| 3 | Attention economy: getting eyeballs |
| 4 | Amazon.com: the online shopping mall |
| 5 | eBay: everything has a price |
| 6 | Google: don't be evil |
| 7 | Facebook: owning people |
| 8 | Digital capitalism: money talks... |
| 9 | Free economy: free speech or free beer? |
| 10 | Gift economy: the spirit of giving |
Study Resources
This unit is delivered using the following methods and materials:
Instructional Methods
- Audio/Video conferencing
- Blogs
- Chat rooms
- Discussion Forum/Discussion Board
- Online assignment submission
- Podcasting/Lecture capture
- Standard Media
- Streaming Multimedia
- Web links
- Wikis
Print based materials
- Welcome Letter
Online materials
- Audio/Video - Streaming
- Online Assessment
- Printable format materials
- Resources and Links
Textbook information for this unit is currently being updated and will be available soon. Please check back regularly for updates. Alternatively, visit the Unibooks website and enter the unit details to search for available textbooks.
Relevant Courses
This unit is a core requirement in the following courses:
This unit is an approved elective in the following courses:
This unit may be eligible for credit towards other courses:
- Many undergraduate courses on offer through OUA include 'open elective' where any OUA unit can be credited to the course. You need to check the Award Requirements on the course page for the number of allowed open electives and any level limitations.
- In other cases, the content of this unit might be relevant to a course on offer through OUA or elsewhere. In order to receive credit for this unit in the course you will need to supply the provider institution with a copy of the Unit Profile in the approved format, which you can download here. Note that the Unit Profile is set at the start of the year, and if textbooks change this may not match the Unibooks textbook list.
