Information Technology Reference
In-Depth Information
Since this period, the Internet has evolved beyond being a channel for
information exchanges to becoming a multi-channel and multi-platform
that is proving to be the most important marketing medium in the history of
modern business. So far, the Internet has progressively moved from informa-
tion provision to communications and exchanges, then to commerce and even-
tually to participation through all the 2-D and 3-D interactive applications
(or, if you like, web 2.0 platforms) discussed throughout this topic. All of
these have been propelled by both the technological developments that have
enabled web applications as well as the progression of the competence and
interest levels of web users.
The first phase of the World Wide Web was driven by
curiosity
and the
need for both consumers and luxury brands to discover the Internet. Both par-
ties were assimilating the scope and extent of this new channel but while the
brands remained somewhat hesitant and suspicious of the Internet, consum-
ers took up the web with much enthusiasm, leaving the brands behind. The
result was that by the time the Internet moved to its second phase of content
generation, luxury consumers had become visibly more advanced in using the
Internet than the luxury brands that were supposed to be providing the content.
The second phase of the Internet evolution, which we witnessed between
1993 and 2000, was the period of the Internet
Boom and Bust
and then
revival that was based mainly on commerce. This period began with much
fervor and zest for retail and other multiple purposes as the discovery stage
gave way to a new kind of knowledge on advanced uses. Web portals like
Yahoo, Hotmail and AOL began to emerge between introducing search
engines, albeit in a limited form. Internet users were already hooked on
emails and were searching for more offerings while Internet providers were
at the same time looking to tap the opportunities within this expanded and
growing market. As a result, online shopping websites began to emerge,
introducing products at low prices to encourage shoppers to spend online
without being suspicious of security issues. Others also introduced end of
season products and goods that could not be sold online. The Internet got its
first taste of commercial activities while generating a reputation of being a
channel for the retailing of low price, low quality, low involvement goods.
The popularity of the bidding website eBay, which was founded in 1995,
solidified this position as the website became a standard in “low prices for
all” and “price independence” through its involvement of users themselves.
Others like Amazon.com which focused on retailing fast-moving mass mar-
ket goods like topics, CDs and DVDs also enabled the Internet's reputation as
a low price retail channel. The Internet climate towards the end of the nine-
ties was similar to a “gold rush” and several people made a bid to launch
Internet-based businesses, many of them with unfeasible business plans and
operational models. The nature and fast rate of these business launches how-
ever eventually led to a bust in 2000 famously termed the “dotcom crash”
and websites like Boo.com became the references for this dramatic episode
