#ONDC

The Open Network for Digital Commerce (ONDC) is an initiative with the goal of fostering open networks for all facets of exchanging goods and services across digital or electronic networks. ONDC is designed to operate on an open-sourced methodology, utilizing open specifications and open network protocols that are independent of any specific platform.

At the core of ONDC are open protocols that cover every step in the entire chain of activities related to the exchange of goods and services. These protocols are akin to the hypertext transfer protocol for information exchange over the internet, the simple mail transfer protocol for email exchange, and the unified payments interface for payments.

These open protocols will be employed to establish a public digital infrastructure in the form of open registries and open network gateways. This infrastructure will facilitate the exchange of information between providers and consumers. Providers and consumers will have the flexibility to use any compatible application of their choice for information exchange and conducting transactions over ONDC.

In essence, ONDC transcends the current platform-centric digital commerce model, where both the buyer and seller are constrained to use the same platform or application to be digitally visible and engage in a business transaction.

#Beckn Protocol

Beckn is an open protocol for local commerce that is location-aware. It permits sales and service promotions to be identified across industries and retrieved by any consumer application. Therefore, it facilitates the seamless delivery of offers and services to the consumer by integrating offerings from various providers and forms. By leveraging 5G and high-speed network technologies, the protocol incorporates e-commerce functionality into the transport and/or network layers. The sales offers or services become accessible and transparent to the Application layer of any Beckn-enabled implementation. Beckn protocol implementation is also possible at the firmware and middleware levels.

This is a compilation of open specifications that provide the functionality of Beckn. Protocol APIs, message formats, network design, and reference algorithms comprise the specifications, which enable multiple commercial service provider entities to integrate their services and provide customers with a unified, seamless experience.

This results in the demand-side digital infrastructure (applications and other channels) being decoupled from the supply-side infrastructure for service provisioning. This is achieved through the provision of integrated location-aware services that are potentially accessible on any online consumer interface (including but not limited to voice assistant apps and devices), messaging, online maps, and wallets, which are widely used within a given city.

Its decentralised architecture eliminates the necessity of developing a centralised platform for the simultaneous integration of services from multiple providers. By facilitating secure and privacy-protected interactions, the protocol inherently guarantees privacy and security.