Companies such as Ariba , Mountain View, Calif., and Commerce One , Pleasanton, Calif., have come to the forefront of the trade exchange trend via their early focus on procurement particularly procurement of indirect goods. After participating in the formation of more than 30 marketplaces, we have heard from suppliers and Net market makers alike about the need for sell-side systems in the marketplace context, says Phillips.
Suppliers don t want to be a line item in a catalog.
Rather, they want rich systems to differentiate themselves, profile customers, and segment prospects. To most observers, the coming of age of sell-side solutions is a natural evolutionary development. Most first-generation marketplaces were agents of the buyer, he says. Phase two will be marked by a shift to the supplier side a transition that s happening now. A leading manufacturer of fluid power components and extruded plastic products for the industrial, aerospace, automotive, and the heating, ventilation, and cooling markets, Aeroquip Corp ., Maumee, Ohio, has been focusing on its e-commerce solution for more than two years.