Internet Business Machines
The marquee names of the Internet Age may be dot.com companies, but the big dot in the New Economy these days is IBM. Today, Big Blue is doing it all: helping merchants hang their shingles online, advising corporate chieftains on how to reshape their businesses top-to-bottom--even wiring local courthouses. Some 25% of its revenue, about $20 billion, is driven by demand for e-business. "They get it," concedes the president of rival Sun Microsystems. "Every day they're telling a better story."
Plus: Q&A with Chairman Louis V. Gerstner
FEATURES
Strategies
Rewiring Lucent in a Rush
The telecom-equipment giant shows how an old
manufacturing outfit can battle upstarts on the Net
Management
Needed: The Human Touch
Online retailers are discovering the importance of
customer-service reps who can talk, think--and help
Using the Net for Brainstorming
They're called "knowledge markets": Small groups inside big companies that attract and develop ideas via the Web
A Trucker for the Information Highway
Yamato is emerging as the Japanese delivery
company of choice for cybershops that need to
ship merchandise
Personalities
The Man Who 'Dot.commed' Sun
How Ed Zander helped transform Sun Microsystems into an Internet heavyweight
Upstarts
U.S. vs. European Startups
All the ways in which a Belgian online booking agency for vacation rentals was aced out by its American counterpart
Net Worth
myCFO.com: Managing Megabucks
Web star James Clark aspires to help the Jet Set finesse their finances while building a site that can leverage special deals
The Net Is Finally Catching Eurodollars
Venture investing in e-startups could help haul Europe into the Net vanguard and give a boost to its economies
Net Culture
The Net Is a Family Affair
With half of all U.S. households expected to be online by next year, the Net is creating an electronic hearth
COMMENTARY
Perspective
Copyright on the Net
Aggregators repackage information from other sources. It may sound like poaching, but it needs to be protected
Data Mine
Going, Going...Richer
Surveys of income levels of folks bidding online argue powerfully for weaving auctions into your Web site
Digital Dispatch
A Case of Internet Itch
The Web has trained users to expect ever-escalating levels of responsiveness, and not just online. One addict's first-person account of mouse co-dependency
Cutting Edge
Bricks-and-Mortar Blockheads
Traditional retailers argue they offer superior convenience, ambience, and personal service. If only...
CRUISING THE WEB
Home Page
Commandeering all the Web names you need, geek gumshoes, computers as costume, NBA coaches back up
gut instincts with data mining, celebrity endorsements
for Web companies, and online traffic schools
Clicks & Misses
Bargaining Power
Web sites that go beyond comparison shopping to enable consumers to negotiate have a ways to go
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Online Links
Additional Q&As and more
Keep up with developments in the fast-paced world of E-business at ebiz.businessweek.com. The site offers the latest news the staff of Business Week magazine, Business Week Online, and from CNET. Check out what we'll be analyzing in
our upcoming set of regular E-business features.
Monday
Perspective:
Take My Money, Please
Paying bills online sounds like a natural. So why is it taking so long to get going?
by Geoffrey Smith
(Dec. 6)
Tuesday
Company Closeup:
At Your Service
A Web site without good customer service doesn't stand a chance. That's where Silknet Software comes in.
by Timothy J. Mullaney
(Dec. 7)
Wednesday
Movers & Shakers:
Book Brawl
Can Jonathan Bulkeley make up for lost time at barnesandnoble.com?
by Diane Brady
(Dec. 8)
Thursday
Street Wise:
Buy, Hold, Sell
Our weekly look at the e-business stocks making news.
by Amey Stone
(Dec. 9)
Friday
Clicks & Misses:
Bulking Up
Accompany.com assembles groups to buy in bulk and save big.
by Timothy J. Mullaney
(Dec. 10)
Also,
watch for daily additions to our Data Mine, a collection of facts and figures.
And sample occasional opinion pieces by staffers, researchers, or executives. Or browse through stories from Business Week and Business Week e.biz.
ebiz.businessweek.com is a free area of Business Week Online, although some stories from the magazine may occasionally be available only to subscribers.
On the Cover:
Louis V. Gerstner Jr.
Photograph by Karen Kuehn/Matrix
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Larry Ellison's Green Eyeshades
Oracle CEO Larry Ellison is usually associated with giant corporate databases. But now he's thinking small. Specifically he's backing a startup that will provide accounting services to small businesses. Meet NetLedger. Company Closeup, Oct. 19
Of Toys and Trust
Sure, online toy stores are building awareness with their flurry of ads. But columnist Ellen Neuborne says the more important issue is who she can trust to deliver the goods. Perspective, Nov. 22
 Do you know this woman?
You should. She's Elizabeth Echols, the former investment banker who is the top White House staffer devoted to electronic commerce. Movers & Shakers, Nov. 3
 What makes a Web site great? What makes it a drag? Our experts will choose from among sites that volunteer for this regular feature and tell them what works and what doesn't. You get to watch. First up: virtualgourmet.com
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Technology Forum
Our newest feature. Hit our Cutting Edge or Digital Dispatch columnists with your questions. Initiate a dialogue. Be part of the give-and-take.
Search
Business Week e.biz is now searchable. Try "Amazon." Try "eBay."
Collected Works
Sample Joan O'C. Hamilton's wry insights in the full set of Digital Dispatch columns.
Recommended: "Where Second Place Means Loser," a look at the soapbox derby for Silicon Valley type A's.
Q&As
Check out chats with IBM CEO Louis V. Gerstner Jr., AOL Chairman Stephen M. Case, Qualcomm CEO Irwin M. Jacobs, and others.
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