You can use that to your advantage now in negotiating more realistic deals, compared to last year's bout of highway robbery. The first thing they should do is to recognize what they have, and what they don't have. They have competitive advantages that most don't realize. Reputation and brand name count, and will count again in the Digital Economy as new entrants struggle to deliver and customers revert to names they can trust. Fixed assets are a mixed blessing.
Assets provide security of supply, and create value in the right conditions.
Assets also require capital, and they can slow reaction to market changes. The first priority is to recognize the scale and significance of the change. The new economy is one where information passes seamlessly and instantly across the entire value chain. It's far more than just e-commerce, and that's why a better name is the Digital Economy. It isn't just about selling product over the Internet, nor just the use of reverse auctions for procurement.