The document summarizes ebXML technology development in Hong Kong. It discusses Project Phoenix, an initiative to establish ebXML infrastructure in Hong Kong, including R&D products like an ebXML registry and pilot projects applying ebXML to e-procurement and e-logistics. It also covers promotion activities, challenges in adopting ebXML technology, and a strategy to cross the chasm between early adopters and mainstream users.

1. ebXML Technology
Development in Hong Kong
2002 ebXML Conference
Seoul, Korea, 1st October 2002
Mr. Thomas Lee
Center for E-Commerce Infrastructure
Development (CECID), Hong Kong, China
www.cecid.hku.hk

2. Agenda
Who We Are
Project Phoenix
R&D Products
Promotion Activities
Pilot Projects
Chasm-Crossing Strategy
1st October 2002 2002 ebXML Conference, Seoul, Korea 2

3. Agenda
Who We Are
Project Phoenix
R&D Products
Promotion Activities
Pilot Projects
Chasm-Crossing Strategy
1st October 2002 2002 ebXML Conference, Seoul, Korea 3

4. Who We Are
Center for E-Commerce Infrastructure
Development (CECID)
An R&D center at the University of HK
Missions
– Develop e-commerce enabling technologies
– Support e-commerce standardization
– Participate international e-commerce initiatives
– Transfer technology and skill to the community
1st October 2002 2002 ebXML Conference, Seoul, Korea 4

5. Agenda
Who We Are
Project Phoenix
R&D Products
Promotion Activities
Pilot Projects
Chasm-Crossing Strategy
1st October 2002 2002 ebXML Conference, Seoul, Korea 5

6. How HK Sees ebXML
EDI over Internet, potentially more cost-effective than
traditional EDI
Useful for trade, logistics, e-Govt development in long-run
– Government Interoperability Framework proposes ebXML
to be G2B framework
Needs XML vocabulary standardization and design
methodology
– HK Govt is forming an XML Coordination Group to coordinate
XML vocabulary construction
Needs clarification on positioning ebXML vs Web Services
New paradigm needs market verification
Well received by industry, esp. HK Govt
1st October 2002 2002 ebXML Conference, Seoul, Korea 6

7. Project Phoenix
To establish ebXML infrastructure in HK
Funded by the Innovation and
Technology Commission of HK Govt
US$1.2M for 2 years (Jan2002 – Dec2003)
Executed by CECID with strong industry
sponsorship and collaboration
Project Coordinator: Dr. Francis Lau
Principal Investigator: Dr. David Cheung
Project Manager: Mr. Thomas Lee
1st October 2002 2002 ebXML Conference, Seoul, Korea 7

8. Sponsors and
Collaborators
E1 Media Technology Limited
Hong Kong Air Cargo Terminals Limited
Hong Kong Article Numbering Association
The Hong Kong General Chamber of Commerce
Hong Kong SAR Government
– Marine Department
– Health Department
– Information Technology Services Department (ITSD)
MTR Cooperation Limited
Saggio (Asia Pacific) Company Limited
IBM China/Hong Kong Limited
OOCL
APL…
1st October 2002 2002 ebXML Conference, Seoul, Korea 8

9. Agenda
Who We Are
Project Phoenix
R&D Products
Promotion Activities
Pilot Projects
Chasm-Crossing Strategy
1st October 2002 2002 ebXML Conference, Seoul, Korea 9

10. ebXML Registry V2
Worked with Registry TC to complete V2
reference implementation alpha version on
Mar
– Demonstrated in JavaOne Expo in San Francisco
Released V2.1 on Jul
Published on FreebXML.org on Sep 13
1st October 2002 2002 ebXML Conference, Seoul, Korea 10

11. Hermes MSH &
Business Router
Hermes ebXML Message Service Handler
– V0.9.1.3 released on FreebXML.org on Sep 13
– First open-source MSH with RDBMS persistence to
support advanced ebMSv2 features, e.g. reliable
messaging
– Transferred to over ten companies/organizations in HK
– Over 300 recordable downloads within 2 weeks
since its release
– Preparing for Drummond Group’s Interoperability Test
Business Router
– Designed for large corporations to automate doc exchange
according to BPSS/CPA
– Under design and target to release on 03/Q1-2
1st October 2002 2002 ebXML Conference, Seoul, Korea 11

12. ebMail
Designed for SMEs to conduct e-commerce, esp. with large
corporations
Simple eMail GUI for preparing and exchanging biz docs
through ebMSv2 over SMTP
Extensible through plugins for different biz docs and BPs
Signs and encrypts docs for authentication and confidentiality
Supports adaptors for data import and export for external
applications, e.g. MS Excel, Web browser
Lightweight MSH requiring no dedicated Internet connection
and server
1st October 2002 2002 ebXML Conference, Seoul, Korea 12

13. 1st October 2002 2002 ebXML Conference, Seoul, Korea 13

14. Agenda
Who We Are
Project Phoenix
R&D Products
Promotion Activities
Pilot Projects
Chasm-Crossing Strategy
1st October 2002 2002 ebXML Conference, Seoul, Korea 14

15. Promotion Activities
Established FreebXML.org with eight other
international organizations
Joined various international e-commerce
initiatives and bringing new technologies
and experiences into HK
– OASIS, UBL, ebXML Asia…
Host ebXML Asia Committee Meeting on Nov
28-29
Delivering talks and trainings to local and
overseas IT, biz, and Govt groups
1st October 2002 2002 ebXML Conference, Seoul, Korea 15

16. FreebXML.org
An international initiative to promote ebXML adoption through
open-source software and experience sharing
Website www.freebxml.org launched by CECID on Sep 13
Steering Committee includes reps:
– Cyclone Commerce (USA)
– Kasetsart University (Thailand)
– Korea Institute for Electronic Commerce (Korea)
– Sterling Commerce (USA)
– Sun Microsystems (USA)
– Sybase (USA)
– XML Global (Canada)
– University of Hong Kong (Hong Kong, China)
Soliciting open-source projects, vendor products, deployment
cases to be linked to this site
1st October 2002 2002 ebXML Conference, Seoul, Korea 16

17. 1st October 2002 2002 ebXML Conference, Seoul, Korea 17

18. Agenda
Who We Are
Project Phoenix
R&D Products
Promotion Activities
Pilot Projects
Chasm-Crossing Strategy
1st October 2002 2002 ebXML Conference, Seoul, Korea 18

19. eProcurement Pilot
MTRC procures office supplies from Saggio on
SaggioDirect.com
Every month, MTRC receives paper delivery notes,
invoices and statements from Saggio, and manually
– Reconciles invoices and statements
– Enters data to create accounts payable records in its
accounting system
Transmission of e-docs with ebMSv2 helps
– MTRC and Saggio automate procurement procedures
better efficiency, accuracy, mutual trust…
– MTRC retrieves procurement data for analysis & processing
– Saggio saves paper and create value-add for customers
Undergoing UAT; will go trial in Q4/02 and
production in Q1/03
1st October 2002 2002 ebXML Conference, Seoul, Korea 19

20. Deliver goods
Check &
approve
invoices
Buying on Web
Send
e-invoices
Receive with ebMS Prepare
e-invoices e-invoices
with ebMS (xCBL)
Extract
invoice
data
1st October 2002 2002 ebXML Conference, Seoul, Korea 20

21. Health Industry Pilot
A prototype for pharmaceutical product
import/export license application with MSH and
ebMail
– Participants: Health Dept & ITSD of HK Govt
Existing process: pharm co’s submit app and obtain
license in person
New process: pharm co’s submit app through
ebMSv2 and obtain license in person
– Save one trip and shorten processing time
Single XML gateway via ebMSv2
– SMEs use ebMail to fill in and email app forms
– Large co’s generate and submit apps in XML using MSH
1st October 2002 2002 ebXML Conference, Seoul, Korea 21

22. Manual entry mode through ebMail
Health
Dept
Internet Hermes
MSH
Pharm n
Co catio
ppl i n
n se a c eipt je ctio
Lice ion re l / re
l icat p rova
Ap p e -a p
s e pr
Licen
MessageOctober 2002
1st generation modeebXML Conference, Seoul, Korea
2002 22

23. eLogistics Pilot
Participants: Marine Dept (MD) and ITSD of HK Govt, and 2
shipping agents (OOCL & APL)
A shipping company must submit a Dangerous Goods (DG)
Manifest 48 hours before the arrival of the vessel to MD
Existing process: Web (>95%) or paper submissions (<5%)
New process: machine generation and submission of DG
Manifests through ebMSv2
– Eliminated data entry through Web
Developed a Biz Vocab for DG Manifest based on:
– ebXML Core Component
– IMDG by IMO (International Maritime Organization)
Will go production in Q1/2003
Intend to automate other submissions in similar way
1st October 2002 2002 ebXML Conference, Seoul, Korea 23

24. Shipping
Agents Paper submission
1
W
eb
su Marine
bm
2 iss Dept
io n
Internet
Hermes XML submission Hermes
MSH 3 ebXML Message Service MSH
over HTTPS on VPN
1st October 2002 2002 ebXML Conference, Seoul, Korea 24

25. Agenda
Who We Are
Project Phoenix
R&D Products
Promotion Activities
Pilot Projects
Chasm-Crossing Strategy
1st October 2002 2002 ebXML Conference, Seoul, Korea 25

26. Technology Adoption
Life Cycle Model
Pragmatists Conservatives
(Early (Late Majority)
Majority)
Visionaries
(Early Skeptics
Adopters) (Laggards)
We are
Tech
Enthusiasts
here at
(Innovators) Chasm
1st October 2002 2002 ebXML Conference, Seoul, Korea 26

27. High
Paradigm Shock Technology Enthusiasts Visionaries
Conservatives Pragmatists
Low
Low Application Breakthrough High
1st October 2002 2002 ebXML Conference, Seoul, Korea 27

28. Bridging the Chasm
Lack of reference cases
– Ally with tech champions
– Share deployment cases, e.g. through freebXML.org
– Incubate lead ‘pragmatist’ projects
Lack of whole product, total solution & implementation expertise
– Create open-source ebXML tech components
– Develop localized applications
– Transfer them to users & vendors
Is ebXML a stable B2B e-commerce standard for future?
– Educate the community, esp. lead users and consultants
– Clearly position ebXML and other techs (e.g. Web Services)
Insufficient marketing
– Vendors must cooperate to establish the market before it is large enough
to compete, e.g. sharing experiences and reference cases
– Target-market key IT drivers, e.g. Govt, IT/commerce associations, lead
enterprises
1st October 2002 2002 ebXML Conference, Seoul, Korea 28

29. Chasm-Crossing Strategy
Project
Phoenix
R&D Pilot Full
Products Projects Deployments
HK Lead
Projects / SIs
End
FreebXML.org Users
1st October 2002 2002 ebXML Conference, Seoul, Korea 29

30. Signs for Entering
Early Majority in HK
Pilots are well received
ebXML is proposed as G2B framework in the
HKSARG Interoperability Framework
Draft for Consultation
Some large Govt projects are planning to
adopt ebXML as messaging backbone, esp.
in logistics applications
Some System Integrators have taken the
Registry and MSH software to engage
commercial projects
1st October 2002 2002 ebXML Conference, Seoul, Korea 30

31. High
Paradigm Shock Technology Enthusiasts Visionaries
CECID MTRC
HKANA Saggio
(HK Chapter of EAN)… Tradelink…
Conservatives Pragmatists
E.g. banks… HK Govt
System Integrators…
Low
Low Application Breakthrough High
1st October 2002 2002 ebXML Conference, Seoul, Korea 31

32. Our Experience…
R&D must be very focused and understand its
mission
– We have been doing XML R&D for almost 3 years
R&D must look at the fundamental
– XML is bringing in a fundamental paradigm shift
– ebXML, Web Services are vehicles only
R&D must partner with champions, lead users,
international standards bodies…
XML + Internet is bringing in disruptive changes
The market needs open standards
Open-source/free software catalyses early
market adoption and jumpstarts vendor product
development
1st October 2002 2002 ebXML Conference, Seoul, Korea 32

33. The End
Thank You
http://www.cecid.hku.hk
mailto:info@cecid.hku.hk