ISPs are keeping pace with changing requirements in most areas, but many buyers are less than confident about their ability to provide complete electronic business solutions. Industry sectors covered in the study include finance, manufacturing, and retail. However, European employees remain at a disadvantage compared with their US peers in gaining even basic access. Among US companies interviewed, two thirds of staff have email and half have Web access. Among European organizations, half have email and just one quarter have Web access.
Buyers appear to be uniformly satisfied with their Internet access service.
Each country and industry rated access services at 4.0 or higher out of 5. For Web and application hosting services, buyers are highly concerned about capacity issues. While buyers are generally satisfied with the reliability of their access and hosting services, the service guarantees they receive from their ISPs are inadequate for mission-critical electronic business. Half of the organizations interviewed received no service guarantee from their ISP for their Internet connectivity. Basic Internet connectivity is the foundation for all future electronic business.