Techno-commercial Information on the Internet

Aparna Simha (aparna@ncsi.iisc.ernet.in)
and
K. Thulasi (thulasi@ncsi.iisc.ernet.in)
National Centre for Science Information, IISc, Bangalore-560012

1. Introduction

The Internet which started as a scientific aid is now transformed into a global market, spawning a unique set of products and services. It has metamorphosed into the world's latest global bazaar representing an openmarket place where neither geographical nor tariff barriers can prevent CEOs from reaching out to customers all over the world.

In 1993, over 70% of the traffic on the Internet was between educational institutions. Now, the ratios are reversed, with over 65% of the traffic from business related sites.

More and more companies are looking to the Net to enhance their business and shift parts of their operations to this new market. Already, many corporates are using the Net to advertise, market, sell and distribute their products.

2. Why does your company need Internet?

• Data presented in the form of user-friendly home pages.

• Hyper-linked text enables your managers to jump easily from one subject to related issues.

• Computers with different platforms can access and use information.

• Companies can glean benefits of using the Internet and the World Wide Web.

• Accessing information over the Internet is much faster on most occasions than transmissions and transfers via fax or postal courier services.

• You can place documents on computers on the Internet and make them instantly accessible to millions of users.

• Rapid Communications-Electronic Mail has proved to be an effective solution to the problem of telephone tag.

• Cost-effective document transfer.

3. What can Internet do for businesses?

With a wide variety of information available over the Internet, one wonders whether Internet is really a useful source or is it just a lot of hype? The usefulness of the Net directly depends on the products or services of each business. There are different benefits depending upon the type of the businesses, whether a supplier, a distributor or a retailer.

Most managers would want to have answers to questions like:

• Can I really sell my products in American markets using the Net?

• Does it cost far less to distribute products through the Internet?

• Can I shop for the things I need on the Web?

• Can we use multimedia advertising for our products on the Internet?

• Can we analyse new products and do market research?

• Can we widen our client base?

Well, the answer is "Yes" to all of the above. The "Cybermart" does have a lot to offer albeit with some disadvantages. The Net provides opportunities for companies to manage their business more efficiently. Here the value addition from selling the product can be accomplished in both physical and electronic worlds.

4. Types of business related information on the Internet

This section includes useful guides to internet sites, with business information and sources for all types of business information. This is not a comprehensive list. These sites have been grouped arbitrarily and hence, there may be an overlap among the categories.

4.1 General Business & Industry Information

These are meta sources providing links to various types of business related information.

International Business Resources (http://ciber.bus.msu.edu/busres.htm) This is a very extensive resource page with a lot of information about all aspects of international business.

Worldclass Supersite (http://web.idirect.com/~tiger/magazcou.html) with instant free access and step-by-step commentary for 1,025 top business sites from 95 countries, chosen based on usefulness to world commerce, timeliness, ease of use, and presentation.

Business Information and Resources (http://www.acm.uiuc.edu/sigbiz/business.html) SigBiz's comprehensive business resource on the Net.

Diverse Industry and Sector Information (http://www.fuld.com/i3/index.html) It contains links to over 300 intelligence-related Internet sites, covering everything from macro-economic data to individual patent and stock quote information.

BrainWave (http://alpha.n2kbrainwave.com/m/free.htm) Search for Business & Company Information, Copyrights, Patents & Trademarks, Medicine, News, People & Biographies, Science& Technology, Social Science, and, Government & Education. On subscription.

International Business and Global Data (http://moon.pepperdine.edu/~dmccrea/InternationalResources/intlresc.html) Contains : Global Data from IGOs and NGOs, Sources of Information from Global IGOs, Sources of Information from Other IGOs and NGOs (Representative Examples) etc.

Indus Market Global (http://www.imgcom. com/iii.htm) Online world trade center for electronic commerce for all businesses affiliated with South Asia. Includes : Virtual Marketplace, Online Services, Indus Business Journal , Trade Networks , Yellow Pages On-Line, Electronic Classifieds Members Club, Virtual Office. Many pages are still under construction.

The Internationalist (Center for International Business & Travel) (http://www. internationalist. com/INTRNTNL/service.html) Provides compre-hensive business information countrywise.

World Business Network (http://www. wbn.org)

Global Market Analysis Resource Page (http://cob.jmu.edu/wrightnd/resources.htm)

Business Information Sources (http://www. dis.strath.ac.uk/business/). This aims to be a selective guide to some Internet sites which contain business information, with some emphasis on UK sources. It is organised by type of information.

Business & Technology (http://www.brint. com/Business.htm) An extensive and comprehensive business information source on the Internet.

NEDSITE (http://www.nedsite.nl/search/search.htm) Links to business directories, yellow pages etc. Site is based in Netherlands, but is English language.

SIFT (http://www.sift.co.uk/) Fee-based access to various sources of (mainly UK) company information (e.g. ICC, D&B), market research information (e.g. Datamonitor) and news (e.g.Reuters, AFP). Also `Accountancy edition' with content geared to accountants.

The All-Internet Shopping Directory (http://www.all-internet.com/) presents thousands of top shopping sites, online shopping malls and stores, gathered together for you in one HOT directory! Serving 50,000+ Shoppers monthly!

4.2 Company Profiles/Company Analysis

These sources provide Company name and address, product information and description of the business. They also provide company analysis including ranking and rating of intertnational companies.

Fortune Global 500 (http://www.pathfinder. com/@@8voNWAcAXfNToceQfortune/global500/)

Forbes 500 Annual Directory, April 1997 (http://www.forbes.com/forbes/97/0421/5908172a.htm)

Hoover's Online (http://www.hoovers.com)-Provides company profiles & access to 10,000 Records on Public & Private Companies.

IndustryWeek 1000 IW ranks the worlds leading publicly held manufacturing companies based on revenues. (http://www.industryweek.com/iw1000/main/html/imp00000.html)

Thomas Register (http://www.thomasregister. com/) Provides details about American manufacturers, free of charge, on the Internet.

Carol (http://www.carol.co.uk/) CAROL is a free service offering one point access to European Company Annual Reports Online.

Asia Plus (http://www.asiaplus.com/index. html) Helps you find Business and Leisure in Asia! Provides information on : Manufacturers and exporters - thousands of products online among others.

Asia's Premier Business and Leisure Online Directories (http://www.asiatrade.com/) - Manufacturers, Conventions and Trade Exhibitions, Travel and Leisure , Educational Institutions, Importer & Exporter, Service Industries, Whole Sellers, Insurance Companies, Banking & Financial Institutions, Real Estate, Investments and others.

Asian Sources Online (http://www. asiansources.com/)

4.3 Market Information/Analysis including Production, Demand, Supply, Forecasts, etc.

Market Research Reports—The University of Toronto Library provides a searchable database of Findex Market Research reports from Biotechnology to Pharmaceuticals. (http://utcat.library.utoronto. ca:8002/db/FINDEX/keyword.html)

Chemexpo Chemical Profiles (http://www. chemexpo.com)- Lists current producers and their capacity, historical demand and growth, pricing, uses, market strengths, weaknesses, and outlook for selected chemicals.

Frost & Sullivan (http://www.frost.com/) is a customer-focused marketing consulting company providing the following services : 1) Research Publications Group produces market research reports that monitor more than 300 industries. These reports stimulate new ideas, aid business planning, and support investment decisions. 2) Market Engineering Services: Client-Defined Research — These projects focus on solving problems with in-depth market measurements, analysis and strategy. 3) Customer Engineering Services -The network of Customer Engineering Centers provides in-depth customer survey information to clients in virtually every country and language in the world.

OAA's (Office of Automotive Affairs) (http://www.ita.doc.gov/industry/basic/) — Provide automotive market profiles of various countries, European Union, and other related reports. OAA also provides, in its homepage, links to Auto Industry data, leading Auto Manufacturers, US Auto Industry Sector reports, etc.

Consultancy Services (http: //www.marketfile. co.uk/con22.htm) MTI Consultants prepare a market profile and review the dynamics of chosen market sector. Sections cover: Market overview and operating environment — economic, demographic and cultural factors affecting market change , Market size - including volume and value (current year and historic trends), manufacturing and retail price based comparisons, Market sectors — profiling each segment of the market product developments and brand shares, Profiles of manufacturers, distributors and customers — a full strategic review of each key player in the market , Prices and advertising Market trends and issues affecting market growth in the next 5-10 years, Outlook for the market, including volume and value forecasts to the year 2000.

Key Note Reports (http://www.keynote.co.uk/) Excellent source for UK Market Information, covering a wide variety of product sectors.

Find/SVP (http://www.findsvp.com/) Research Publications include MarketLooks: Concise Graphical Summaries on 500 Product Markets (Summary page of this can be viewed free), Share Facts: Top-Line Market Share Data on over 800 Consumer Products , Market Intelligence Reports: Comprehensive Data and Analysis on Key Markets & Industries.

Current Industrial Reports (http://www. census.gov/ftp/pub/cir/www/) Production data for US manufacturing industries on monthly, quarterly, or annual basis, from 1992 onwards.

4.4 Trade — Import/Export statistics, Trade Directories, Buy/Sell Products

World Trade (Import/Export) (http://www.arctic.net/~inventor/in03145.htm)

STAT-USA/Internet- Export & International Trade (http://www.stat-usa.gov/BEN/subject/trade.html )

NETSOURCE ASIA-Asia's leading Trade Directory & Services (http://www.netsource-asia.com/ )

NAFTA Register (http://www.nafta.net/global/) Directory of trading partners and export service providers in NAFTA countries. Search by company name, product or service.

Worldwide Export Trade (http://www. wedcon. com/exporter/export.htm/) is a diversified Company involved in Domestic and International Trade as a Representative Agent and Export Management Company. Worldwide Export Trade provides Export Services, and represents American-made products in a variety of local, regional, national, and international markets.

Global Merchants' online International Trade Directories (http://www.global-merchants.com/home/trade.htm) Trade Directories reveal the secrets that the big companies have been keeping away from you for so long. Top Quality products... Low priced due to low cost of labor. Above all, you have over 30,000 products from thousands of suppliers from across the world in these directories. Listing of International Trade Directories available.

Direct Web International (http://www.global-imp-exp.com/home.html) - Has produced the Global Import-Export Directory with the international community in mind.Global Import-Export Directory will be a leading resource tool for businesses all over the world. They provide addresses of suppliers/buyers etc on the following: Automotive, Educational , Financial/Insurance , Manufacturers, Transportation/Freight Forwarders, Travel, Wholesalers.

Trade Database and Resources (http://www.traderoute.com/) Global Connexxions is an authoritative commercial source providing a one-stop comprehensive online service for international trade connectivity. The center of the system is an enhanced trade database featuring the full use of graphics, interactive user-friendly screens, integrated electronic mail and fax.Includes : GCI Trade Database, The Electronic Trade Leads Database, Business Resources, Libraries and Guides, Trade Forum etc. On Subscription.

World Corner Market place - Diamonds, gold, gems, precious stones (http://www. chsmarket.com/) Helps to advertise here free, to buy, sell, or batter gold, diamonds (rough or cut), gems, precious jewelry, mineral collections, art or other valuables.

WTCA Yellow Pages - International Links (http://www.clubservices.com/wtcatlanta/wtc_link.html) Includes Global and United States News Services, World Trade Center Resources, Trade Resources etc.

4.5 Financial Information

Fin Web FINWeb is a comprehensive financial economics web site (http://www.finweb.com/)

Street Eye (http://www.streeteye.com/) Provides links to resources in the financial area worldwide. (banks, equity markets, exchanges, financial news sources etc).

Financial Services internet directory (http://www.find.co.uk/) Links to areas such as insurance,banking, investment financial advice, publishers of financial information.

ECONData: (http://www.inform.umd.edu/EdRes/Topic/Economics/EconData/.www /contents.htm). A Source of Economic Time Series Data from Inforum, at the University of Maryland.

4.6 Electronic Commerce

Electronic commerce' (EC) is an integrative concept, designed to draw together a wide range of business support services, including inter-organisational e-mail; directories; trading support systems for commodities, products, customised products and custom-built goods and services; ordering and logistic support systems; settlement support systems; and management information and statistical reporting systems. Includes any kind of business-related transaction conducted with the assistance of electronic tools.

Credit Card Network (http://www.creditnet. com/) Sign up to enable the ability to process credit card payments in real time, directly from your web site.

CyberCash (http://www.cybercash.com/) Gives a general overview, plus specific shopper, vendor, and financial institution details and introduces new micro-payment service.

DigiCash (http://www.digicash.com/) Over-view of company and Ecash system for secure Internet transactions. Info on how buyers and sellers can become involved.

MasterCard (http://www.mastercard.com/set/) SET MasterCard presents this guide to SET Secure Electronic Transaction, as well as help on online shopping and commerce.

Business Week Guide to Mutual Funds (Feb. '97) (http://www.businessweek.com/1997/05/b35121.htm)

Stockmaster: WSJ Stock Charts (http://www.stockmaster.com/)

Quotecom Data (http://www.quote.com/) Selected Market Data on Stocks, Commodities, Futures, Mutual Funds, etc.

FreeEDGAR (http://www.freeedgar.com/) FreeEDGAR offers free, unlimited access to fundamental financial data as it is released to the SEC. Corporate financial reports created from EDGAR filings, downloadable Excel spreadsheets of all SEC filings, and financial analysis and reference resources are a mere mouse-click away.

Accutrade (http://www.accutrade.com/) offers clients, latest market news, daily earnings, price charts, top performers, industry reports, and mutual fund news and reports, from industry leader, Thomson Market Edge. In addition, Accutrade provides its customers with 20-minute delayed stock quotes and real-time quotes for a low monthly fee and much more ..!

Datek Securities Corp. (http://www.datek. com.) is a retail brokerage firm, established in 1970. Datek has led the market for the last five years in electronic order placement for in-house traders and a few large customers, through Internet.You can trade any New York Stock Exchange, American Stock Exchange, Nasdaq National market or Nasdaq Small Capital stock. It costs only $9.99 for any trade of up to 5,000 shares. To trade more than 5,000 shares, you will need to put in additional orders. Datek Online does not trade Bulletin Board stocks.

Hemmington Scott Publishing (http://www.hemscott.com/) Financial Statistics of UK Listed Companies, making it available in an easy-to-access form to end-users and third party vendors alike.

Bid4it (http://www.bid4it.com) launched by CyberQuest allows the sellers and buyers to set their own prices.

Tenders - Tender in Australasia with Tendersearch (http://www.tendersearch. com.au/)

Tenders Net (http://www.tenders.com.au/) Your Global Tender Network

South African Tenders Web Site (http://www.trade.co.za/tenders.htm) - Temporary website. Includes Public Sector Tender listing, Private Sector listing, Public Sector Address listing, Instructions, Links to company specific tender advertisement.

Investor's Guide 1997 (Fortune) (http://www.pathfinder.com/@@8voNWAcAXfNToceQ /fortune/1997/specials/investorguide97/int.html)

The World's Best Investments (Business Week June 17, 1996) (http://www.businessweek.com/1996/25/b34801.htm)

World Bank Investment Promotion Agency Network (IPAnet) (http://www.ipanet.net) Through IPAnet, users can access information about investment worldwide — from business operating conditions to detailed descriptions of investment projects, joint venture opportunities, and privatization initiatives.

Halifax (http://www.halifax.co.uk/expat/Nhalifax.html) links to investments portfolio and news from the UK.

Ernst & Young World Tax Guide (http://www.eyi.com/itax/)

TaxWorld (http://omer.actg.uic.edu/) Tax information around the world; also includes history of taxation; tax policy and comments, and tax language around the world.

Global Commerce Link (http://www. commerce.com/) -provides corporate clients with Internet-enabled business process solutions.

Rutgers Accounting Web: Accounting Information Retrieval (http://www.rutgers. edu/ Accounting/raw.htm)

4.11 Trade Shows/Fairs

EXPOguide US Countrywide Trade Shows, Conferences and Expositions (http://www.expoguide.com/)

The IMEX Exchange Trade Show Pavilion (http://www.tsnn.com/imex/imex/) Searchable - helps you locate International Tradeshows in 106 Industries.

4.12 Patents and Standards

IBM's US Patent database (http://patent.womplex.ibm.com/ibm.html) IBM and Optipat have launched a searchable US Patent database on the web. Coverage is from 1971-1996. The database will be regularly updated. Data includes bibliographic information, abstract, claims, references and images for patents from 1987 onwards.

OSHA - Occupational Safety and Health Administration (http://www.osha-slc.gov/) This site provides a searchable database of OSHA Standards found in Section 29 of the Code of Federal Regulations as well as various other OSHA documents.

Internet Patent News Service (http://sunsite.unc.edu/patents/intropat.html) `Mostly daily' mailing with patent news. Contact Gregory Aharonian at patents@world.std.com

4.13 Corporate Web Sites

Corporate Sites (http://www.p-c-net.net/~hawki/business.htm) Includes sites like : AT&T Global, Borland International Inc, Compaq Computer Corporation, Fujitsu America Inc., Hitachi America Ltd., IBM Corporation, Intel Corporation, Microsoft and many more !

Reebok (http://www.reebok.com)

4.14 Job Opportunities - Recruiting New Employees

MESA International Job Opportunities in Food Science, Processing & Manufacturing (http://www.mindsync.com/c-bert/) Executive and technical recruiting specialists for the Food Processing and Manufacturing, Metal, Plastic and Corrugated Packaging and Computer industries in the U.S. and Internationally.

CareerPath (http://192.216.189.91:81/res/owa/rb-applicant.display-rblogin?) Has the Web's largest number of most current job listings.

4.15 Building up Business & Advertising on the Net - Advise and Help

Help on creating business and company homepages

Smart Business Supersite: Advertising, Marketing, Promotion, and Public Relations (http://www.smartbiz.com/sbs/cats/mktg.htm)

BAPP: Business Advertising & Promotional Products (http://www.bapp.com/) helps you to increase your online sales... get your business on the web and the rest of the internet ... or increase the public's awareness of your online site.

How to start a business: Internet Marketing (http://www.inreach.com/sbdc/book /netmarketing.html)- Everything you need to know about starting and operating a small business including choosing a business and name, making a business plan etc.

SpyderByte Communications: Web Development, Business Internet Services (http://www.spyder.net/ ) Provides Web hosting, Technology enabled selling and strategic technology consulting.

Global Internet Business Solutions (http://gibs.com/) is geared to helping your business plan, chart, and establish it's Internet presence. Services include: Website Design & Development, Website Hosting, Website Maintenance and Catalog Development.

4.16 Business News & Magazines

TechWeb: Today's Technology Headlines (http://www.techweb.com/wire)

Harvard Business Review Incl. Archive of Abstracts (http://www.hbsp.harvard.edu/noframes/groups/hbr/main.html)

Business Week (http://www.businessweek.com/contents.htm)

Business Magazines by Country (http://web.idirect.com/~tiger/magazcou.html) In this new group, listed alphabetically by country, are 47 business magazines that were previously included in the World Business Magazines group.

Financial Times (http://www.ft.com/) The premier site for international business news, comment and analysis.

The Economist (http://www.economist.com) - free subscription by e-mail.

Book Search (http://www.internationalist. com/INTRNTNL/search.html) Includes busi-ness books, directories, languages, travel, and maps.

MSNBC (http://www.msnbc.com/) You can put Marketwatch (stock market news) on your desktop. News Alert will alert you when stories matching your keywords are posted on the MSNBC site. Personal News Offline downloads stories matching your topics and allows you to read them offline. There is also Personal Front Page which you customise and go to their site to look at. Unsurprisingly, some of these applications only work for the Microsoft-enabled. They are all free.

4.17 Business Software

General Business Software - Microsoft Desktop Applications (http://www.pidelta. be/htm/i153913.htm)

PC Magazine: Top Retail Business Software (02/04/97) (http://www8.zdnet.com/pcmag/issues/1603/pcmg0067.htm)

PC Magazine: Top Business Software (07/00/96) (http://www8.zdnet.com/pcmag/issues/1513/pcmg0078.htm)

4.18 Mailing Lists, Discussion Forums & Conferences

World Business Mailing Lists (http://www.wbn.org/maillist.htm)

Europe-Business is run by the North American Association For Exports To Eastern Europe, and concerns trade leads in Eastern Europe. To join, send the message subscribe Europe-business to listmanager@hookup.net

Connectivity India'97 (http://www. connectivityindia.net/bussolution.html) - is an Annual technology Forum of Microland. Highlights the best practices and methods that specific industries must adopt to successfully integrate technology into business.Provides schedule of annual conferences (topics) on some Industry sectors and themes.

4.19 Business Consultancy

Business Consultants (http://www.whatsite. com/business/companies/consultant/index e.htm) Links to Business companies and consultants.

Index Listing of Business : Consulting (http://www.seekit.com/business/consulting/)

Global Business Information Systems (GBIS) (http://www.gbis2000.com/) provides process alignment, technology and projects management assistance.

Better Business Bureaus (http://www.bbb. org/about/consumerServices.html) provide valuable services to both consumers and businesses.Reliability Reports on businesses Scam Alerts Reports on the most-asked-about charities and other soliciting organizations Consumer Buying Guides and Tips.

The Directory of Design Consultants (http//www.designdirectory.co.uk/direct.htm)- locate consultants by their design skills, name or location in the following areas:Engineering, Graphics, Interior, Ergonomics, Industrial, Fashion, Internet, Interior Textiles ..

5. Indian Scenario

How can corporate India sieze the opportunities of the Net to globalise? The Internet is becoming a global gateway to India Inc. The marketspace will prove to be more receptive to corporate India's globalisation.

What are the businesses, Indian companies can conduct or are conducting on the Net?

5.1 Selling Information

Information can be sold from huge databases, addresses and telephone numbers of potential business partners, from music and images to newspapers and magazines.

Indiaworld (http://www.indiaworld.com)

Rediff on the Net (http://www.rediff.com/home2.asp) offer news, trivia and other information.

India Business Links (http://www.bus.miami. edu/~ssarkar/mba/buslink.htm)

PrimeIndia (http://www.primeindia.com/) Provides Yellow Pages, Business directory, Export/Import information.

IndiaPlus (http://www.indiaplus.com/)- Business, Real estate, Information, Entertainment, Classifieds and much more.

Confederation of Indian Industry CII (http://www.indianindustry.com/) is the apex association of Indian industry, with a direct membership of over 3,600 leading Indian companies.

ABC India Business Connection (http://asiabiz.com/india/index.html) Business services, including banks and financial institutions, manufacturers and exporters, and travel services.

5.2 Financial Information Including Business News, Trade and Market Reports, etc.

Matrix Informer (http://www.matrix.co.in) offers searchable, high-quality Indian business information on pay-per-use basis.

IndiaTrade (http://www.indiatrade.com/) Indian business houses, Investment oppurtunities, Industry listing, Importers/Exporters, Media, Advertising, Tenders, Classifieds, Human resources ...

IndiaInc (http://www.indiainc.com/) provides information on doing business with India - Strong Points Of Indian Economy, Procedures For Investing In India,Trade Policy and Profiles of Indian Companies.

Optimal India (http://www.optimal-india.com) provides links to Expomall India [The world wide sourcing mall for Indian products], Corporate Park [Sites for the discerning Corporate World], Real-Estate India, & Advertising, Garment Export Management System and much more !

India Market Site Map (http://www. indiamarket.com/sitemap.htm) is designed to explore sites . Provides lot of useful links on Indian market sites, companies etc.

MetroIndia Online (http://www.metroindia. com) The Best Bet in your quest for business information about India, Business Directories, Export-Import related information covering Apex Trade Bodies, Export Promotion Councils, Financial Institutions, Indian Embassies.

5.3 Inviting collaborations with global partners

India (http://host.westbengal.com/wbidc/india/frnequty.htm) Illustrative list of of Foreign Collaborations with more than 51% Foreign shares.

India Yellow Pages (http://www. indiayellowpages.com/COLLAB.HTM) Collaborations- Flameproof Equipment Pvt. Ltd. invites collaborations / joint-ventures

5.4 Stocks and Shares, Equity Offerings, etc.

Bombay Stock Exchange (http://www. bseindia.com/)

Harshad Mehta's Site (http://www.harshad. com) offers advise and recommendations on the stock market.

National Stock Updates (http://www. nseindia.com/)

StockIndia (http://www.stockindia.com/) Offers the latest in-depth news on the ever vibrant Indian economy. Technical charts of each and every listed Indian scrip. Along with a volumes chart. A comprehensive analysis of one of India's numerous industries.

India Online Business Page (http://India Online.com/biz.html) Investment opportunities, buyers's requirements, export offerings, joint-ventures offerings, and business services.

5.5 Company Information Including Exporters, Suppliers, Importers

India Sources (http://www.indiasources.com) a newly launched comprehensive web site specialising in business information on a cross section of industries.

TradeAccess (http://www.tradeaccess.com/) The premier resource for business development in India, Malaysia, the Philippines, Thailand and Sri Lanka.TradeAccess offers simultaneous searches across all countries, and customized Company Profiles with instant downloading in tab delimited or table formats. Provides access to a database of over 13,000 companies, offering the best choices for suppliers, customers and business partners.

123Trade - the Indian Trade Directory (http://www.123india.com/123trade/) The Indian Trade Directory on the Internet. The 123Trade directory contains listings of trade contacts to & from India. All listings are classified product-wise as well as city-wise. A search option for locating trade contacts is on the anvil. Click on the directory option below for the entire listings.

Indian Importers' Directory (http://www. trade-india.com/tradeindia/iid/index.html) This comprehensive directory lists around 9,500 Indian Importers, grouped under 315 product & service categories.Includes Trade Scenario in India - International Developments, World Trade Scene, Trends in India's Imports, Composition of India's Imports, Direction of India's Imports, Foreign Exchange Reserves And Trade Deficit Direction of India's Imports & ISD Codes STD Codes.

SICOD (http://www.metroindia.com/html/misicod.htm) - Southern India Commercial Directory, by MetroIndia Online - the Best Business Information source on South India. This comprehensive business-to-business directory provides essential information alongwith contact details of over 12,000 top of the line Indian Companies in the region. SICOD data is listed under more than 1,200 specific products and services classifications and covers Manufacturers, Traders, Exporters, Importers, Service Sector Organisations, etc. - encompassing the complete commercial and industrial scenario of South India.

5.6 Govt. of India Websites, Current Affairs

National Informatics Centre Homepage (NIC) (http://www.nic.in/)offers lot of information on Indian ministries, Indian states and Union Territories, Parliament, organizations etc.

IPAN - Indian Public Affairs Network (http://www.ipan.com) -IPAN online combines daily updates of press releases and photographs from major Indian and MNCs, with company profiles and monthly reviews of key sectors of the Indian economy.

LeatherIndia (http://leatherindia.com/)- Comprehensive information like, Investments, Exporters, Trade shows, Magazines on leather and many more.

Spices Board India (http://www. indianspices.com/) Covers India's spice industry including links to the spices board, activities, quality assurance, spice events, a spice library and bazaar.

5.7 Finance, Loans and Banking

HDFC (http://www.hdfcindia.com) offers details of all its leading and deposit products as well as a comprehensive database of available properties throughout India.

Reserve Bank of India (http://www. reservebank.com/)

Industrial Credit and Investment Corporation of India (http://www.icicibank. com/) Industrial Credit and Investment Corporation of India (ICICI) is one of the India's leading financial service institutions. It has total assets of over USD 10 billion.ICICI Bank is a commercial banking outfit set up by ICICI. Infinity is the Internet Banking Service from ICICI Bank. Infinity provides convenient remote banking facility. It provides various options to get information about all your accounts at any branch of the Bank, over Internet.

5.8 Indian Corporate Web Sites

Indian Corporate Gateway (http://www. owlnet.rice.edu/~ravi/india/index.html) Provides e-mail addresses and web links for a large alphabetical list of Indian companies.

Hindustan Lever Limited (http://www. hll.com/)

The Tata Group (http://www.tata.com/)

AirIndia Homepage (http://www.airindia. com/)

6. Case Studies at NCSI

At NCSI, we have fielded a large number of business related queries and we have used the Internet to answer or supplement most of the queries. Some instances are given below:

1. Potato production and disease problems in India. Information was available from :
   Information on Potato Production in India (http://julian.dac.uga.edu/docs/asia/india.htm)
   Economics and Agronomics of New Crops - Seed Potatoes (http://128.233.59.128/agec/frames/potatoes/~viralle.htm)

2. Standards on design specifications of relief valves. We got the required standard from :
   American Petroleum Institute (http://www.cssinfo.com/info/api.html)

3. Market demand and supply of Aniline and Nitrobenzene. Sources were :
   Chemexpo Chemical Profiles (http://www. chemexpo.com)
   SRI International's Chemical Economics Handbook Program (http://piglet.sri.com/CEH)

4. Patent Laws and rules for drugs. We got the information from :
   China medipharm Insights vol. 1 (http://www.dmu.ac.uk/ln/cmn/current/0016.html)

5. Company profile and product details of COMSAT laboratories. It was obtained from the Company homepage (http://www.comsat.com/labs/)

7. Search Engines

We have listed above, general and specific business resources available on the Net. What does one do, if one is not aware of any such sites? He/she naturally turns to Internet Search Engines. Search Engines are one of the primary ways that Internet users find web sites. Search Engines, also called "spiders" or "crawlers," constantly visit web sites on the Internet, in order to create catalogs of web pages. Unlike search engines, directories are created by humans. Sites must be submitted, then they are assigned to an appropriate category or categories. Because of the human role, directories can often provide better results than search engines. Yahoo is an example of a directory.

7.1 Some Popular Search Engines

AltaVista (http://altavista.digital.com/ ) Opened in Dec. 1995, AltaVista is run by Digital and has gained wide-spread name recognition. It also partnered with Yahoo in June 1996, becoming the "preferred" search engine. The Business and People options, search USA yellow and white pages. Browsing by subject categories is an additional feature.

Excite (http://www.excite.com/)- Launched in late 1995, Excite lists sites in one of three ways: Excite Search, Channels By Excite and Excite NewsTracker.

Einet Galaxy (http://galaxy.einet.net/galaxy/Business-and-Commerce.html) - Facilitates browsing and searching of various subject categories.

Infoseek (http://www.infoseek.com/ ) - Around since early 1995, Infoseek is well-known, well-reviewed and well-connected. In Fall 1996, the new service with 50 million URLs was introduced.

Lycos (http://www.lycos.com/ ) - Around since May 1994, Lycos is one of the oldest of the major search engines. Lycos lists sites in two main ways. There are search engine listings, and there is an associated directory called "Web Guides." Each guide is oriented around a subject area, such as News or Shopping. They list sites, along with links to other relevant material.

Northern Light (http://www.northernlight. com/ or http://www.nlsearch.com/) - Northern Light opened to general use on Aug. 12, 1997. Northern Light features an ability to classify documents by topic, which it hopes distinguish it from some of the other search services, even those with their own topical listings.

Web Crawler (http://www.webcrawler.com/) WebCrawler opened to the public on April 20, 1994. WebCrawler has an associated directory of reviewed sites, WebCrawler Select.

Yahoo (http://www.yahoo.com/)- Around since late 1994, Yahoo is the oldest major web site directory. Yahoo is well-known, well-used and well-respected. It is also the largest directory (as opposed to search engine), listing 500,000+ web sites, as of mid 1997.

7.2 Meta Search Engines

For searching accross more than one search engine.

MetaCrawler (http://www.metacrawler.com/) - One of the oldest meta search services, MetaCrawler began in July 1995 at the University of Washington.

Metafind (http://www.metafind.com/)

ProFusion (http://www.designlab.ukans.edu/profusion/)- University of Kansas metacrawler that allows searches of up to six major search engines and also provides broken link detection.

7.3 Specialty Engines

SEARCH.COM (http://www.search.com/) makes searching the Internet a cinch. The collection of search tools delivers you the answers you're looking for, from hundreds of sites across the Internet. You can search the Internet in one stop with Search.Com.

Hotbot (http://hotbot.com/) - Launched in May 1996. Search Engines with special emphasis on Business, Investing and Finance.

World Trade Locator (http://www.intl-tradenet.com/locator.htm) - Use these convenient resources to find your way inside International TradeNET LLC, A World Trade & Commerce Network and other places on the Internet and the World Wide Web. You can SEARCH by topic or key words. You can also use these links to list (submit) your URL to be included in the various search engines.

A Business Compass (http://www. abcompass.com)-Lists business internet resources, with links and brief descriptions. Search or browse broad category. Also searches business news sites for current news.

Netpart - Company Site locator (http://www.netpart.com/resource/search.html) Locates companies on the Internet with even partial names.

AT1 (http://www.at1.com/) - Backed by PLS, it is used for databases or to provide site-specific searching. The AT1 service taps into these databases, which usually cant be reached by the general search engines.

Compare.Net (http://www.compare.net/) -A nice, easy way to search for various products.

Deja News (http://www.dejanews.com/) - Deja News is devoted to searching Newsgroup discussions, with archives stretching back to March 1995. For example, say you wanted to find discussions about online shopping. You could scan the list of Newsgroups and hope to find something like alt.online.shopping. Instead, just enter those words into the Deja News search box, and you'll be presented with messages, and newsgroups, relevant to the topic.

Phlip (http://www.phlip.net/) -Phlip allows you to search for web sites offering channels via PointCast, Internet Explorer or Netscape. Those maintaining channels can list themselves.

Excite Shopping Search (http://jango.excite. com/)

Visa Shopping Guide By Yahoo! (http://shopguide.yahoo.com/)

7.4 Rating Services

Lycos Top 5% (http://point.lycos.com/categories /index.html) Formerly called Point. Aims to provide descriptions and ratings of `the top 5%' Internet sites. They are rated on content, presentation and experience. The site is searchable, and broken into broad subject areas.

The Magellan (http://www.mckinley.com/) Searchable or can be browsed by subject category. You can add + to a word to ensure it is found (eg +business), - to exclude it. In late '95 it had access to 20,000 described and `rated' (up to four stars) and described sites, and 60,000 others, 35% outside the USA. No stats. given currently.

7.5 Indian Search Engines

123India (http://www.123India.com/) site is probably the first India-specific search site on the Net. It offers various other features apart from regular search & indexing facilities incl. online greeting service, a personal directory, e-mail addresses etc.

The Agni (http://www.indiawatch.org.in/agni/) search engine is promoted by Indiawatch, a joint venture between VSNL, CMC & Pritish Nandy Communications.

The Khoj (http://www.khoj.com/) site is an offering from Ravi Database, the company that runs the popular Indiaworld site. Apart from search facilities, it offers daily updated features like "thought for the day".It is fastest among the 3 sites.

8. Keeping up-to-date with new Web sites

Scout Report - for Business and Economics (http://scout.cs.wisc.edu/scout/report/bus-econ/) produced by InterNIC. Good resource descriptions. To subscribe to the weekly email bulletin send the message subscribe scout-report yourname to listserv @ lists.internic.net You can also get the newsletter emailed in HTML-coded form.

Web Digest for Marketers (http://wdfm.com/) which lists marketing and commercial sites. Archive of site descriptions for members.

The Monthly Internet Resources Newsletter (http://www.hw.ac.uk/libWWW/irn/irn.html) is produced by Heriot-Watt University in Scotland.

Internet Magazine (http://www.emap.com/internet/) has information on new sites.

Japan's Nikkei Net (http://satellite. nikkei.co.jp/enews/BB/hitlist/index.html) highlights new business-related sites.

Infowatch (http://www.ncsi.iisc.ernet.in/ncsi/infowatch.html) Monthly publication from National Centre for Science Information, India, reporting selected new resources on the Internet.

SENN - Scientific and Engineering Network News (http://www.senn.com/) Best Web - Discussion of the best Web sites. Subscription address : listserv@trcearnpc.ege.edu.tr

9. Conclusion

There exists a tremendous potential on the Net for business managers, consultants and planners to effectively market the "4Ps" i.e. the Product, the Price, the Promotion and the Place.

Exporters and manufacturers of products from commodities to handicrafts, from leather to tea, from seafood to tobacco can use the cybermart to contact customers and deliver their wares. The simplest form of advertising on the Web will attract the audience. Enhancing the ad with a Web site will be an added bonus. Indian companies do not need expensive distribution channels, in different countries. A Web presence will do the trick.

To sum up, as Bill Gates, CEO, Microsoft says,

"The Internet is likely to become the electronic highway of business. Every kind of electronic commerce will go on the Internet- from picking real estate to finding a professional that you want to work with- allowing people with expertise, even if they want to stay at home, to offer that expertise and work through the screen. Its really very very different from anything that's happened before."

References

1. Sprout, Alison L. The Web within your company. Business Today , Feb 22- Mar 6, 1996.

2. Bhatia, Vivek and Kawatra, P. Gateway to globalization. Business Today, Aug 22-Sept 6, 1996.

3. Business & Technology http://www. brint.com/Business.htm

4. Business Information Sources on the Internet http://www.dis.strath.ac.uk/business/

5. Alta Vista http://altavista.digital.com/

6. Economic Times http://www. economic times. com/

7. The Business of the Internet: An Introduction to the Internet for Commercial Organizations http://www.rtd.com/people/rawn/business. html

8. National Centre for Science Information http://www.ncsi.iisc.ernet.in/

9. Webber, Sheila. Surveying the Internet. Information World Review, Nov 1997.

10. Search Insider. Information World Review, Nov 1997.

11. Rajashekar, T.B., Science and Technology Information Resources on the Internet. Information Today and Tomorrow, Vol.16, No.2, April-June 1997.