Today, the outlook is far less enticing. It is true that the Internet creates an environment of price transparency and freer markets, but these factors make it more difficult for companies to sell goods and services at a profit. A year ago, companies were embarking upon e-commerce programmes, designed to boost sales. Today, the tendency is to invest only in 'mission critical' software, in a bid to contain expenditure. Conditions are unlikely to improve markedly in 2001 either.
Funding is a growing problem too.
France Telecom is unlikely to find its proposed flotation of Orange an easy process. Meanwhile, BT has talked about demerging its mobile phones arm, but there is little appetite in the stock market for such offerings presently. We know that companies whose customers are cash poor are failing so, perhaps, we should be looking towards those businesses whose customers are cash rich. This year's most affluent customers are likely to be governments. Despite the recent travails of the technology sector, we should not overlook a steady rise in the popularity of high technology consumer electronics items either.