Electronic certainty to boost consumer trust and business efficiency
Government legislation supports industry
AUCKLAND, New Zealand — Microsoft New Zealand said today that the passing of the Electronic Transaction Bill provided
electronic certainty which would help boost consumer’s trust of technology.
The Electronic Transaction Act, puts electronic transactions on the same legal footing as paper-based transactions, and
provides for certain paper-based statutory requirements to be met electronically.
Microsoft New Zealand Managing Director, Ross Peat said that Microsoft, in collaboration with industry counterparts, had
been working hard to build consumer trust through self-regulatory means, and despite a significant amount of success,
governments had an important role in creating legal frameworks to help ensure transactional certainty.
“This Act adds crucial weight to what we are trying to achieve in the industry,” Mr Peat said. “More importantly, the
ETA will ensure that New Zealand stays on-par with our international counterparts and will help make global e-commerce
transactions more seamless.”
Consumer confidence, certainty and trust in terms of conducting electronic transactions is imperative, especially if New
Zealand wants innovation and entrepreneurship on the Internet to realise its full potential, “ he said.
“The positive impact on the wider business community will also be significant, as the Act will inevitably lead to
reduced compliance costs for all businesses, and will enable new processes and business models.”
About Microsoft Founded in 1975, Microsoft (Nasdaq “MSFT”) is the worldwide leader in software, services and Internet
technologies for personal and business computing. The company offers a wide range of products and services designed to
empower people through great software — any time, any place and on any device.