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June 12, 2000

Solution Series: Put To The Test

Even as new business models emerge and old rules fly out the window, some patterns repeat themselves. Like Web sites and electronic data interchange before them, business-to-business E-marketplaces have broken down barriers and captured the hearts of even some crusty IT managers and more than a few vendors. They imagine a new economy where vast partnerships transform huge, competitive industries into online cooperative states, where technology really does drive business.

Too extreme? To some extent it's already here. Fully 37% of 375 business and IT managers surveyed this month by InformationWeek Research use E-marketplaces for buying and selling. Also, 54% use extranets or electronic supply chains, and 40% use portals. Some 600 E-marketplaces have flooded the Web, and hundreds of businesses are trading on them.

But also following the pattern of first-generation Web sites, business-to-business marketplaces are at a crossroads. Where do they go from here? Once businesses put up Web sites, they had to rethink and revamp their business, their customers, and their strategies. The same holds true for marketplaces.

In this Solution Series, we present the vision, but also the technical, financial, and cultural realities that it's crashing into. Welcome to Phase 2. Now that E-business has proven viable and walls are tumbling down, what will replace them? Which among the exchanges will survive or fail? Will partners all along the supply chain reap rewards from their risks? What if they don't? Giant industry consortiums may succeed where small independents fail, but both face challenges. We offer advice, strategies, and best practices. Let us know your plans for Phase 2.

Paula Klein
Managing Editor, Special Projects

pklein@cmp.com

The Solution Series package:

E-Marketplace Vision Collides With Reality
B-to-B E-commerce has turned business models upside down, but the frenzy seems to be cooling down.

Ask The Tough Questions
Are E-exchanges Category killers or department stores?

VerticalNet Keeps Pace
It's the leading Business-to-Business marketplace builder, but some question its ability to stay in the game

Making It All Work
Customers want robust, interoperable software suites for end-to-end e-commerce-but no single vendor can do it all.

More Than Just A Net Marketplace
MedChannel's goal is to offer services and integration as well as a medical-industry exchange.

Altrade Serves As A Natural Resource
A head start and big trading volume give the natural gas marketplace a competitive edge. Can it last?

Industry Expertise Counts
Three Key elements to Success: Expertise, Mass, Capital.

Get Ready For The Shakeout
Lack of vision, strategy, and execution threaten exchanges.