During the next few years, e-marketplaces will significantly expand the type of services they offer. In addition to order matching and transaction brokering, IDC expects they will begin to provide financial, marketing, logistics, project management, and even legal support services.
"E-marketplaces are ideally positioned to provide a suite of business services related to the transaction," said Dr. Leo Lipis, senior analyst for IDC`s E-marketplace Services research program. "These types of services will help ensure the transaction is completed through the e-marketplace`s systems and provide incentives for participants to continue to conduct business through the e-marketplace."
Before e-marketplaces can begin offering this additional functionality, however, they will need significant help from service providers to set it up. IDC believes external service firms will complete almost all projects that incorporate business services into e-marketplaces. According to the global market intelligence and advisory firm, there will be more than 1,000 such projects in 2004.
"There will be a substantial market opportunity for e-marketplace service firms to link e-marketplaces with other firms that have core competencies in providing financial, marketing, logistics, project management, and legal support services," Lipis said. "Service firms that have established relationships with business services providers are likely to have the competitive advantage."
Information like the above can be found in IDC`s new report Emerging Trends: The Services Opportunity for Integrating Business Services into E-marketplaces (IDC #B22946). This report looks at what type of business services will be integrated into e-marketplaces and the opportunity for services firms to implement them. The report also discusses the adoption rates for these services.
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International Data Corporation (IDC)
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BMI-TechKnowledge Group (BMI-T)
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