Channel architecture is the art of planning, creating and maintaining a balanced structure of providing products and services to consumers across classical and digital channels of communication and distribution. The products and services may be virtual or physical, and each process of communication or transaction may involve one or several channels.
Channel architecture relates to Enterprise architecture and eBusiness. When the channel architecture aims particularly at sales processes, it relates in particular to the e-commerce aspects of eBusiness.
At one end of the channels, we find the end users - the consumers of the communication/transactions. Channel architecture also concentrates on how the channels can be optimally managed at the internal (producer/vendor/originator) side.
Channel architecture involves not only the planning, but also the implementation and continuous improvement of the channel balance by managing cross-disciplinary analysis and implementation.
Related fields on the receiving consumer side include Service design and Experience design.