We are at the mid-point of a decade of business and investment revolution that is redefining markets and transforming the power of governments and individuals. In this presentation Wolfgang Grulke examines the new eCommerce winners, how they strive for a customer service 'nirvana', and how the losers just don't get it!

Disruptive technologies have always been the catalysts for radical economic activity: just think of the railways, electricity, the motor car, television and radio. Now openness, globalisation and deregulation have created a market context in which the Internet and eCommerce are flourishing.

- In 1998, the Internet created $301 b in total revenues and 1,2 million new jobs in the US 
- Today, the car industry estimates that half of all new-car buyers have compared features and prices on the Internet
- All intermediaries are being squeezed even while radical new intermediaries are emerging
- By 2003, 50% of all US households and 65% of all US workers will be wired. Europe will reach these numbers by 2004. 
- What about your business? When will you be able to capitalise? How long do you have?
- SMEs account for 99% of all businesses and more than 50% of economic output. For them the Internet brings unprecedented economic power that was previously only available to the very large corporates

The Internet is proving to be the most disruptive technology in history - bringing business change faster than any other! We're right in the middle of a ten-year business tsunami that's changing the rules and paradigms about business. 

It's changing the role of individuals and investors and our understanding of what 'value' is! Think about the economic disruption that we are living through:

- Global per capita income: In the 1400s rose at only 0,1% pa. In the second half of the 20th century it's rising at nearly 3% pa.
- Capital Flows: In 1914 most traced back to a few thousand wealthy families. Today they are driven by hundreds of millions of investors. 
- Hello Internet! In October 69 at University of California, a radical experiment sent the first packets of data to Menlo Park. The Pentagon was so impressed they commissioned it's use for the backbone of their defence system!
- The cost of a 3 minute international phone call has declined by more than 90% in the last 40 years and the Internet is busy cutting the last 10%!


This session is available as a one-hour to full-day session

The contents for a typical full-day session would include:
- What is Commerce and what are the drivers?
- What is eCommerce and what are the drivers?
- Business-to- consumer eCommerce
- Business-to-Business eCommerce
- Consumer-to-Consumer eCommerce
- Case studies: Amazon.com vs The Financial Services industry
- "Are 'auctions' going to replace today's 'catalogue based' purchasing relationships"?
- The coming 21st Century Drivers for eCommerce
- Everything for free
- The wireless Internet
- The decline of US dominance
- Implications and Conclusions: A tsunami is coming! Do you 'get it'?

Not everyone does! A 1996 US Government report concluded "The Internet
is an amusing toy with little practical application"

This module is passionately passionately presented by one of FutureWorld's Network of Gurus! To discuss this offering in more detail, please contact  cherie@futureworld.co.za

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