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Bulletin
No. 284
May 2000
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Insights
In a few short years business-to-business (B2B) electronic commerce (e-commerce) has become a powerful force for change. According to Goldman Sachs, sales via B2B channels today amount to an estimated $155 billion per year and are likely to reach $1.1 trillion by 2003. Businesses of all sizes and types are busy establishing new e-commerce links to customers, suppliers, and trading partners or expanding sales activities via existing e-commerce links. In addition to the present bilateral links between trading partners, hundreds of digital exchanges or hubs have emerged and many more are likely, extending connectivity to an even larger number of trading partners. In the midst of all of this activity, the modest role of the the banking industry is somewhat surprising. Although banks have introduced their own Internet banking sites, they have not had their own direct role in e-commerce--that is, until recently. Since September 1999, several U.S. banks have introduced an array of bank-hosted e-commerce sites and associated services, suddenly putting banks into a direct role in the e-commerce market for the first time. These new bank services provide business with a new e-commerce implementation alternative and promise to provide significant cost reduction and efficiency benefits to businesses of all sizes in the near future. Author: Thomas F. Horan. 12 pages. Index Keywords: Banking; Electronic Commerce; Financial Services; Internet.
Audio streaming and video streaming on the Internet are becoming increasingly practical communication options as high-bandwidth connections become more common. Although the information-technology industry and the business press remain fascinated with potential applications in the entertainment industry, businesses are discovering that streaming technology presents opportunities for substantial improvements in various business processes. In conferencing applications, streaming media can relieve companies of some of the cost and complexity burdens in dealing with proprietary videoconferencing systems and expensive dedicated telecommunications lines. In knowledge-management applications, streaming media can provide an inexpensive means to increase the richness of communication channels that workers use to share and exchange knowledge of all kinds. In customer-relationship and technical-support applications, streaming media can provide the means to automate and improve large parts of the process of dealing with customer questions and problems. And streaming media provide an inexpensive new way for companies to reach investors and consumers with media-rich investor information and marketing messages. This study examines the potential role of streaming-media technologies in each of these areas and identifies some of the early implementers and providers of streaming-technology solutions. Author: Lindsay C. Wilson. 11 pages. Index Keywords: Advertising; Communications; Information Technology; Internet; Knowledge Management; Video Technology.
The traditional distinction between the haves and the have-nots in industrialized societies is gradually evolving into a distinction between the knows and the know-nots as the ability to access and use knowledge and information technologies becomes increasingly important for social advancement and security. Experts refer to the gap between the knows and the know-nots as the digital divide because which group a person winds up in depends to a large extent on the person's ability to access and use the digital technologies in computers and electronic networks. This study, based on data from the biennial consumer surveys of SRI's MacroMonitor program, identifies how selected demographic factors correlate with personal computer (PC) use in the United States. The study provides data about the penetration rate of PCs and PC-delivered financial services according to geographic region and user life stage, age, education, and income. The study concludes that geographic region and population density (town/rural, medium city, or large metropolis) are both correlates of PC and PC-financial-service penetration. The conclusions have significant implications for what products companies should offer where and how certain consumers will be willing to access products and services. Author: Larry Cohen. 15 pages. Index Keywords: Banking; Consumer Behavior; Financial Services; Internet.
A virtual health community consists of a network of patients, caregivers, and other health consumers who use the Internet to gather detailed information about health conditions and treatments, receive health-care services and products, manage their diseases, and communicate with health-care professionals and each other. Marketing and building customer relationships is inherently different on the Web than it is through traditional channels such as publications and broadcasting. Online communities provide health-industry companies with significant opportunities but also challenges. The Web's interactive nature and plethora of choices provide companies the opportunity to attract customers by sponsoring communities. The extent to which companies can participate in those communities will depend on their ability to earn and maintain on a continuing basis the trust of the community members and provide valuable services and information. This study examines the most common objectives of virtual health communities, describes a typical organizational structure, outlines the ethical and legal issues facing online communities, presents a case study on the virtual diabetes community, and describes effective marketing strategies for pharmaceutical companies and e-commerce health sites to adopt if they want to create or participate in a framework for a virtual health community. Author: Suzanne E. Toledo and Mary Napier. 18 pages. Index Keywords: Advertising; Business Ethics; Health Care; Internet; Marketing.
Concerns about the security of personal and national information have been driving the field of biometrics, which measures personal features such as the face, iris, voice, and handwriting to verify people's identities in a range of situations. Moreover, several microelectronic, optoelectronic, and biochip manufacturers have reduced the price of their hardware in the past couple of years, making biometrics affordable in a wide range of everyday applications. Following the first tier of government and corporate security users, other government agencies, banks, and computer manufacturers are testing new devices in consumer applications ranging from iris-scanning systems in automatic teller machines to systems that control entry to one's home and car via a combination of body-temperature and fingerprint identification. So far, consumer reaction has been positive, with users appreciating the convenience, ease of use, and speed of the test systems. Nonetheless, fears remain of an Orwellian world in which Big Brother gains some level of control over the citizenry by gathering and consolidating reams of personal data. And the price of biometric systems must come down even further if consumers are to see a reason to purchase them. Most analysts believe that the advantages of digital biometrics will eventually overcome such near-term concerns. Author: Brock Hinzmann. 13 pages. Index Keywords: Computer Security; Measuring and Test Equipment; Security Industry; Technology Trends.
| Redux: Knowledge Management |
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| Selected B-I-P Defining Forces Publications |
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News
The summaries below describe current activities and programs not included in the B-I-P membership but of potential interest to members.
Two New Reports from Media Futures
In a bygone era, retailing was dominated by small shops run by owners who developed long-term relationships with their customers. By contrast, most of today's commerce represents a relatively anonymous style of shopping in which clerks often don't even recognize loyal customers, let alone cultivate relationships with them and personalize the shopping experience. However, online access and increasingly sophisticated data-analysis and customization software promise to allow Web-based businesses to reestablish the more relationship-oriented retail style of yesteryear and offer something of the personalized experience that has been the sole province of traditional shopkeepers. E-Merchandising and Personalization describes this personalization technology, its applications, obstacles to its use, and future directions of development.
Digital Cinema looks at a major long-term change about to hit the movie business, changing forever how movies are distributed to theaters. Major digital-media companies are creating the technical advances that are making digital cinema a viable alternative to 35-mm film. In this report, Media Futures (MF) offers an overview of digital cinema's recent progress and of recent corporate moves that aim at riding the wave of digital cinema's development. The report describes benefits that digital cinema promises and obstacles that it still must overcome. Looking toward the future, the report explores the merits of a phased-adoption path that can ease the impact that the digital-cinema transition will have on studio finances. Finally, it provides market-development projections for digital cinema worldwide. For more information about the MF multiclient program, telephone: +1 650 859 4600; email: info@sric-bi.com.
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