In
short, e-business is no more a hype; its opportunities
to grow via the Web are plenty. The hype has been replaced
by a focus on using the Internet to change business
process. It represents an enormous upheaval for business,
but its impact will be felt in rather different ways,
and perhaps at a different pace, than many people originally
assumed. Companies are now realizing that they need
to transform many parts of their business, such as procurement
and distribution channels. However, the days of wild
spending on Internet schemes are gone. Now companies
are overly optimistic about their revenue assumptions.
It is viewed as a complement to the traditional way
of doing business, a clicks-and-mortar approach is being
adopted. But that still leaves ample scope for investments
whose benefits can be carefully calculated. Some of
the clearest Internet-related benefits may come in cost
savings rather than new revenues: As companies like
Oracle and British Telecom have shown, such savings
can be huge.
E-business
may still represent a small share of business among
US manufacturers, but their recent heavy investments
suggest it could surge. There were plenty of opportunities
for smart investments in the new economy. Corporates
are now refocusing their diminished tech budgets on
the Internet. With revitalized stocks, an overall sense
of acceptance from customers and business community
and high profile strategic alliance, e-business has
come back finally. Driven by convenience and efficiency,
e-commerce spending has topped $74 bn in 2002, a 39%
jump from 2001, according to Web traffic measurement
firm comScore Media Metrix. The research firm pointed
out an increase in the number of new online buyers,
as well as greater spending among more experienced buyers,
as the two main drivers of e-commerce growth in 2002.
Others say that e-business is a real business transformation
because it survived the economic downturn. |
