But we also saw many dot-com companies melt down before they could figure out how to turn investment capital into returns. If you had fun in 2000, hang on tight for the ride ahead in the next 12 months, as the Internet continues to mature. Look for more online success stories from businesses that know how to perform offline. Look for online shopping and buying to get easier, too, as credit card companies are listening to shoppers' security concerns. Smart cards and single-use account numbers are two things you'll hear more about in 2001.
Wallet allows for a single checkout process from multiple merchants.
Look for businesses to realize this isn't the Internet Age, it's the Consumer Age, as the Internet gives the consumer tools to make it easy to compare and shop. The customer is in charge, as any successful business already knows. These sites will figure out that it's often easier to bring the content to the user than to rely on the user finding it on their own. Look for more people surfing the Web and sending e-mail and text messages from their portable phones and other wireless devices. Look for plenty of hype over the new top level domain names, but look for the buzz to fizzle as the dot-com moniker continues to be the default place people search first.