Internet and the horizontal integration of IT Businesses
By: FRANCALANCI, Chiara
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Contributor(s): WILLCOCKS, Leslie | KERN, Thomas.
Material type: 
ArticlePublisher: 2001Subject(s): Information Technology | Information and Communication technology Companies | Internet service Providers | IT Architecture | Horizontal Integration | Internet-based Technology ProductsEuropean Management Journal 19, 2, p. 145-156Abstract: For information and communication technology (ICT) companies , the business opportunities arising with Internet-based technology products look like the new cash cows. However, their strategic thinking needs to be disentangled from the traditional ICT-Providing mindset, to ensure they reap long-lasting Internet technology benefits. The authors` work on the design of IT architectures revealed that in the next few years the market Internet technologies and services is likely to focus on a select number of players that offer a cost edge. To sustain their competitive advantage, ICT companies cannot rely exclusively on their technology competencies anymore. They need to strengthen their relationships with customers and become real service-based organisation. Hence, they need to become proactive at sensing their customers`needs, and, ultimately, enhancing their perceived customer value by adding content to their technology products. The more content they can add to technology, the deeper providers will horizontally integrate with their customer`business. There is evidence that their ability to deploy this horizontal integration strategy in different sectors will be a crucial success factor that will distinguish between comoditized and leading ICT firms
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For information and communication technology (ICT) companies , the business opportunities arising with Internet-based technology products look like the new cash cows. However, their strategic thinking needs to be disentangled from the traditional ICT-Providing mindset, to ensure they reap long-lasting Internet technology benefits. The authors` work on the design of IT architectures revealed that in the next few years the market Internet technologies and services is likely to focus on a select number of players that offer a cost edge. To sustain their competitive advantage, ICT companies cannot rely exclusively on their technology competencies anymore. They need to strengthen their relationships with customers and become real service-based organisation. Hence, they need to become proactive at sensing their customers`needs, and, ultimately, enhancing their perceived customer value by adding content to their technology products. The more content they can add to technology, the deeper providers will horizontally integrate with their customer`business. There is evidence that their ability to deploy this horizontal integration strategy in different sectors will be a crucial success factor that will distinguish between comoditized and leading ICT firms
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