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Gold/Mining/Energy : Sideware Systems - SYD.u/V, SDWSF -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: nurk who wrote (3643)	4/15/1999 6:28:00 AM
From: Tim Van Leeuwen	Read Replies (2) \| Respond to of 6076

Companies trying to stand out By Michael Stroud, CBS MarketWatch Last Update: 1:19 AM ET Apr 15, 1999 NewsWatch LOS ANGELES (CBS.MW) -- Customer service and marketing are the buzzwords at this year's Spring Internet World as dozens of old and new Internet players seek to differentiate themselves from the competition and tap the exploding electronic commerce market. From IBM (IBM: news, msgs) to tiny Sideware Systems Inc., companies are launching services that help customers set up and manage transactions over the Internet or solve Internet-related business and technical problems. The focus is a striking change from previous years, when show goers were plied with "gee whiz" innovations like cable modems. The emphasis on reaching out to customers over the Web reflects the fact that some companies that have done so have seen their Internet revenue explode over the last six months. Both Intel Corp. (INTC: news, msgs) and IBM, for example, ended 1998 grossing $1 billion a month from Internet-based transactions. IBM officials predicted today that such transactions will more than double over the next year. The Internet "is no longer just about putting up a nice Web site," said Neil Isford, vice president for e-commerce services at IBM. "It's about using the Internet to reengineer your business. Our theme is: we have years of experience helping companies reengineer their businesses and more than 18,000 e-business projects that we can put to use for customers.'' IBM and AT&T (T: news, msgs) both announced plans at the show's formal opening on Wednesday to dramatically increase their commitment to e-commerce consulting. AT&T plans to provide a turnkey service for helping customers administer web-based businesses. Intel is also investing heavily in Internet-based customer service, with 500 employees today focused on developing Web-based business-to-business services that didn't exist a year ago. With Internet technology, "We've created a sales force that never sleeps, 365 days a year," said Sean Maloney, Intel's senior vice president for sales and marketing. Sideware Systems' "Dr. Bean" product is one of the show's purest Internet customer service plays. The software tool allows Fortune 1000 customers, government and the military to access Web-based customer service for virtually any product. The company's Vancouver Stock Exchange issue has risen dramatically stock in recent weeks after it signed a partnership agreement with paging giant Metrocall. "There's a big customer service problem evolving on the Internet today,'' he said. Conventional email, sent hours or days after the customer requests help "just isn't going to cut it."