What were IBMs early Internet efforts about?
Frankly, none of us had any idea of how the Internet would move into the commercial world and how it would impact business. One of the major contributions we made was to develop the notion of e-business — that companies could use the Internet to link all of their employees, all of their customers, and all of their business partners. We kept saying…we didn’t see a world where online replaces the physical world. When the telephone came, people didn’t stop talking to each other in person. There’s a balance, and sometimes you do things online, sometimes you do things physically. Q: What differences do you see in the Internet from then and now? A: First, companies are much more serious about the Internet. Second is the technology infrastructure. The original Internet of the mid-’90s was exciting — but a little creaky. The technology and the Internet itself have become much more robust, which is enabling new capabilities. The third level is that e-business on demand is opening up a lot m
