The proprietary model on which businesses, such as Reuters, Dow Jones, Bloomberg and Bridge Telerate were built has been thrown out the door. Clients now demand that each vendor's system provide access to all news and data sources, rather than just its own. The classic, proprietary 'Bloomberg box' on the trading floor, for example, will soon be a relic. From September 1999 Bloomberg will only support an 'open' system. The jury is still out on whether this open, multi-vendor model will precipitate a massive consolidation in the industry.
Margins are under pressure, and anecdotal evidence suggests overcapacity.
Trading desks are already awash with too much information, and many have been reducing the number of subscriptions. Traders are creatures of habit. And traders will not be the only ones. The Internet has opened up some service industries to the possibility of fierce competition like never before, reflecting consumers vastly greater freedom to shop around in an online world. Customers will go to the sites that can get them what they want for the fewest clicks of a mouse.