Q: What's new with today's EDI?
Traditional electronic data interchange (EDI) is an automated system of business-to-business data exchange. Two primary areas of EDI are data interchange (for orders, invoices) and electronic funds transfer (EFT) used among banks, which have high volume in relatively small number of data items, and long-term relationship. Setting up an EDI is expensive such that only large firms could justify investing in EDI. Security-wise, EDI offers robust transactions compared to the Internet since EDI runs on closed, private value added networks (VANs). But for that reason, the number of trading partners is always limited to those who are connected to these VANs.
An open EDI is a more flexible EDI which can carry more diverse types of data (including graphics) and is cost effective for short-term interactions. New standards for forms and communications are necessary to support open data interchanges.
The cost advantage of the Internet will cause much of the existing EDI traffic to move into Internet-based EDI/VAN or secure "extranets" that connect business sites via private communication channels ("tunnels"). Private VAN service providers themselves will play a role in the Internet traffic business. But with EDI on the Internet, EDI-enabled transactions and business processes will be available to and used by firms who couldn't afford to invest in EDI/VAN networks. More EDI-like services will be offered more widely, which may finally bring about "paperless" business that EDI-pioneers promised two decades ago.
For more information about EDI, see EDI on the Internet
