"Commerce on the Internet has to be almost subliminal. You don't really think about the fact that you are engaging in commerce. It is just a natural outgrowth because of the way we interact and our own habitual sense of buying," says Scott. "It's got to be indirect . . . in the background."

• "Goods under $50 are extremely practical for the Web" – "items that are practical, that are 'impulse' for people, providing value which the consumer did not expect to receive."

• The second most important criterion for success on the Internet, according to Scott, is that the Internet service should complement existing services. "I do not believe that a company can exist in virtual space only."

• Perform a cost-benefit analysis before investing.
• Work with an "interactive" agency that knows how to promote products or services over the Internet. Avoid an "interactive division" of a traditional advertising agency."The traditional principles of advertising will not work."

Several of these ideas have been implemented by Terry Jones, chief information officer and president, The Sabre Group of Fort Worth, Texas, in establishing "Travelocity," an online travel service created by Sabre and Worldview Systems Corporation.

Jones advises businesses to be "comprehensive." Travelocity's services are broad-ranging and include airline reservations, as well as the provision of maps and photographs.

Travelocity provides services the user cannot easily get elsewhere, for example, highlights of an upcoming Van Gogh exhibit in Amsterdam or camel-wrestling festival in Selcuk, Turkey.

The company sells merchandise related to the Web experience through an online catalogue with low-cost items like wallets and shoe bags. Furthermore, Travelocity complements Sabre Interactive – a unit of The Sabre Group – and Worldview Systems Corporation, which offer related services to the travel industry.

"Solve a problem in a new way," advises Jones. And provide an easy-to-use index, he says.

Jones creates confidence in his customers by assuring them he is backed by a reputable company – AMR Corporation – which owns American Airlines. This makes people feel comfortable about providing credit-card information via the Internet. More than 75% do.

Having begun this March, Travelocity generated 1.2 million hits and attracted 144,000 registrants in its first three months. The site can be reached at http://www.travelocity.com.

According to Michael Karlin, president and chief operating officer, Security First Network Bank, based in Pineville, Kentucky, and Atlanta, Georgia, "A lot of people are focusing on the Internet as it is today. They're making judgments and plans and they're building for today. And I think that's a mistake."

Two things are going to happen within the next four years, says Karlin. First, people will have "dial-tone access" to the Internet in their homes: establishing an Internet service will be as easy as establishing telephone service. Second, there will be a "dramatic increase in bandwidth."

Such an increase will enable transmission at 10 million bits per second (BPS) as against the current rate of 28.8 [thousand] BPS, providing immediate access to information in the home. The technology is already here.

"We should be focusing on where the Internet is going to be and how we build a business and infrastructure to handle the volume and types of data," says Karlin. It's important, for example, to focus on "being able to deliver video customer support. We need to be building a strategic plan that covers a three-to-five year period. It's going to have to account for dramatic changes in the Internet." Karlin also offers this advice:

• Get a reliable Internet Service Provider.
• Stand out! Create applications that make a difference.
• Don't underestimate the kinds of costs and difficulties that can occur.
• Continually update your Web site.

Businesspeople should ask what kind of relationship they have with their [customers.] How do they market their product? How do they distribute their product? What do they really do now, and how might they profit by doing it better? If they don't know the answers to those questions, it's kind of pointless for them to say, ["How can I use the Internet?"] says Cronin.

Reluctant to recommend specific techniques, she points out that, having established a Web site, businesses have the option to:

• Get the their message out, using picture, sound and motion.
• Offer an online product catalogue.
• Provide post-sale service.
• Serve people in different languages.
• Provide information for potential investors.
• Provide links to other sites, for employees and other users.

Despite the fact that all four Internet experts approach the medium positively, there are challenges. Cronin points out that what we now call the Internet was not designed for business, but for defence and education. To adapt to business, the Internet must be made more secure. She points out, however, that encryption technology already exists. If properly used, data – including credit card information – are reasonably secure.

According to Jones, despite the fact that many talk about credit card fraud over the Internet, there is no known instance of it. If someone wanted to steal credit card information, there would be many easier ways of accomplishing it.

Also, the challenge for cable and telecommunication companies to cope with the tremendous growth of the medium ought not to be underestimated.

Karlin acknowledges that these companies are bearing considerable expense to develop the necessary technologies.

It seems reasonable to expect these costs will be passed on to the user.

Cronin mentions that users currently experience frequent busy signals when trying to logon to Web sites. It's not going to get easier. And some of the technologies have not been adequately developed; for example, video conferencing is available, but the quality is poor and needs improvement.

According to Scott, businesses are losing sight of users' needs. The user is overloaded with information. Businesses have already begun to turn people off. The Internet has a huge indexing problem, to the extent that Scott sometimes finds it easier to get his information from a library. [As mentioned earlier,] the current indexing method operates randomly; we need to systematize and customize.

Scott describes as a challenge – not a danger – the spectre of "Big Brother." Often, to access a service, the user has to register with the site. Having done so, the individual is susceptible to having his every mouse click tracked by the siteholder. The technology for this already exists and this gives the siteholder a wealth of information about the user's habits and nature – perhaps an invasion of privacy.

The Internet is in its embryonic stage. What we do now will undoubtedly shape its future. Like any medium of communication, it can used for good or ill. If it can be said that a corporate Internet strategy is recommended, a societal Internet strategy is crucial.

1. "Fablunget" is a transliteration of a Yiddish word meaning "lost."