It offers live customer support for e-commerce web sites. The model has the potential for channel conflict. The model has the potential for channel conflict with a manufacturer's established supply chain. In contrast to the generalized portal, which seeks to drive a high volume of traffic to one site, the affiliate model, provides purchase opportunities wherever people may be surfing. The affiliate model is inherently well-suited to the web, which explains its popularity.
Users have a high investment in both time and emotion in the site.
Having users who visit continually offers advertising, infomediary or specialized portal opportunities. The community model may also run on a subscription fee for premium services. VerticalNet's communities contain product information in buyers' guides, supplier and product directories, daily industry news and articles, job listings and classifieds. In addition, VerticalNet's sites enable B2B exchanges of information, supplementing existing trade shows and trade association activities. A 1999 survey by Jupiter Communications found that 46 percent of Internet users would not pay to view content on the web.