As always, read the real world case on page 245. It is interesting to note that Amazon just last week reported its first profitable quarter. It has "turned the corner" and now appears to be a profitable business. It is certainly a "model" for doing business on the Internet.
Figure 7.2, page 246, aptly illustrates the impact of the Internet on today's businesses. We can use the Internet, a public infrastructure medium, to directly communicate with customers, suppliers, and other locations of the business, as well as conduct business. Where "here" is isn't important any more. Your customers can literally be anywhere on the planet. So can your competition. The Internet is changing the way business is conducted. Figure 7.3 illustrates some of the business applications that can be expanded and directly supported by the Internet. An important point is made on page 248: global communications are occurring in realtime. All aspects of business and management are accelerating and companies that don't keep up will soon be left far behind.
Figure 7.5 illustrates the business value of the Internet. Page 250 has a list of six major business values supported by the Internet. One key aspect of business value is Customer Relationship Management (CRM), as illustrated in figure 7.5. CRM attempts to "Increase the loyalty of existing customers via improved web customer service and support." We will look at CRM further in Chapter 8.
A good discussion of Intranets begins on page 252. Be sure to read this section carefully and understand the benefits that can accrue from Intranets. This is the fastest growing segment of networked businesses. The discussion of Extranets begins on page 260. Similarly, you need to understand how they can support the management of business. Figure 7.15 summarizes Intranets and Extranets very well.
Section II begins by identifying the three "C's" of networking: communication, coordination, and collaboration. This section provides a good overview of the utilization of IS and IT to support today's rapidly changing business management environment. Your job is to have an overall understanding of the use of the technology so you can be ever on the lookout for opportunities in your business.