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4. There are number of reasons why suppliers don't expedite
process either. They are mainly scared of comparison shopping and brand dilution. Complexity of back end office integration and product catalog conversion also creates major impediment in mass adoption of e-marketplaces within
supplier community. Suppliers with websites, who previously had disappointing e-commerce experience, are also quite skeptical about
benefits that they might achieve from exchanges.
5. Many exchanges' revenue depends on
percentage-based transaction fee, imposed upon
participants. Some companies consider that these fees will reduce their net profit margin, especially, in a down market. This is another cause, why many are not very keen to participate in e-marketplaces.
All these conditions are maybe right and, probably mass scale adoption of e-marketplaces won't take place another several years. However, don't think that companies should relax. As some industries are more advanced in their adoption of B2B technology, companies should constantly check where they stand. If their competitors are already practicing e-business actively; or many of their suppliers are by now on some sorts of exchanges, this is
right time for these companies to consider their online business approach seriously.
The sooner companies understand
benefits that they can reap from B2B exchanges
better it would be for them. For suppliers e-marketplaces offer benefits like liquidity improvement, cost savings, better inventory management, demand forecasting, dynamic pricing etc. Buyers benefits include: cost reduction, real-time purchase, best available price and many others. Research indicates that companies, thanks to B2B exchanges, can gain remarkable cost reductions: 20 to 40 percent of overhead expenses, 5 to 15 percent of buying cost, Purchase Order processing cost from US$ 75 to just US$ 6-8; and decrease of document errors from 20 percent to less than one percent.
Apart from these benefits, early adoption of B2B marketplaces also has great implications for companies. Early birds get considerable information advantage over their competitors; have enough time to learn from trial and error and participate in setting
rules for
exchanges as opposed to - forced to abide by
rules as it would be
case for late-comers.
Whatever approach
companies decide to take in their quest of B2B technology, one thing is for sure that
e-marketplaces are here to stay. Over time, they will definitely evolve and their business models will also change, however, there is no doubt that a major portion of e-business will transact through e-marketplaces in near future.

Nowshade Kabir, Ph.D., is the founder, primary developer and present CEO, of Rusbiz.com, a global business to business e-commerce portal with feature like storefronts, aggregated catalog, e-marketplace, trade leads, internal messaging system supply chain solutions, etc. With a doctorate in Information Technology, Dr. Kabir has worked an advisor to government projects and has over 12 years experience in International Trade.