Compiled by Vicky Nolan
Top Destinations Online Listed
NetValue has been keeping track of the hottest online destinations, and they've put together a list of the top
free-play gambling sites. For September, the top gaming sites were:
- iwin.com
- speedy-click.com
- free-lotto.com
- lucky-surf.com
- group-lotto.com
- web-stakes.com
- imust-lotto.com
- flipside.com
- pogo.com
- gamesville.com
www.netvalue.com
Online Directories Are Dying
Pure directory sites are going to die out, unless they can adapt, according to researchers with Gartner
Research. Users are complaining about the sites in droves. From the first quarter to the second quarter of this year, customer satisfaction dropped 22 percent, researchers found. Even more discouraging, 12 percent of respondents said they would never return to a directory site again, and another 15 percent said they would most likely look for other information retrieval options. "The days of pure hierarchically-based, drill down information retrieval are waning. Unless directory sites immediately make the transition to the best search technologies, it won't be too long before they become artifacts," a researcher explained. The results of Gartner's survey demonstrate that hybrid sites, those that combine search functionality with directory-based information organization, are quickly replacing pure directory sites. Someday, predict analysts, most pure directory sites won't even be necessary since most sites will offer more intuitive search capabilities and coexist with other functions.
Website Maintenance and Design Hog the Budget
The two largest components of site development and operation, according to ActivMedia Research, are site
design/programming maintenance costs (33 percent of the total) and costs for access and site hosting. These
two site components require nearly 60 percent of total global site development and operational budgets
annually. Some costs, like hardware and software, may be born as outside services when sites are
out-sourced, or may show up as independent budgets when sites are internally supported. In total, more than $22 billion, or 17 percent of the estimated $132 billion in e-commerce revenues currently being generated, will be spent by businesses worldwide for companies wanting to establish and maintain an online presence.
www.activmediaresearch.com
Corporations Use IM Too
While instant messaging is seen as a fun communication device for kids, its use in the corporate world is
growing. According to IDC, the number of worldwide instant messaging corporate users will increase at a
compound annual growth rate of 140 percent, from 5.5 million in 2000 to more than 180 million in 2004. For worldwide corporate and consumer segments, the number of total messages sent will approach 2 trillion per year by 2004. An IDC analyst explained, "Several technological and business-rule factors are driving corporate instant messaging deployments and are creating opportunities for corporate IM software and service vendors. However, instant messaging on a corporate level faces obstacles as vendors try to change the minds of knowledge workers and IT managers who see the technology only as a chat application." IDC's analysis of the corporate instant messaging use can be found in "Finding a Place: Corporate Instant Messaging Forecast and Analysis, 2000-2004.
www.idc.com
Broadband's Real Next Home
Despite evidence to the contrary, broadband's next real application will be for television and not PCs, say
analysts with Forrester Research. One analyst explained, "Everyone expects broadband to grow rapidly and
create a market for new types of high-speed enhanced content. What is unexpected is that most of
broadband's impact will be directed to other devices besides the PC. As all types of devices connect to the
high-speed Internet, content will shift to the most appropriate device, like digital music files being played back on the stereo system. Media providers must anticipate the most appropriate device for their content and tailor the consumer experience and business models to take advantage of that environment." Forrester Research predicts that by the end of 2001, broadband connections will double. Plus, all major metropolitan areas will have at least one form of high-speed access, totaling 11 million American households, compared with five million households today. With such easy access, consumers will go online more often and for longer periods of time than their dial-up counterparts.
www.forrester.com