Ecommerce survey shows that businesses are divided on trusting the Internet.

M2 PRESSWIRE-7 September 2000-PEOPLESOFT: Ecommerce survey shows that businesses are divided on trusting the Internet (C)1994-2000 M2 COMMUNICATIONS LTD

RDATE:07092000

When it comes to trusting the Internet for large volume transactions and payments, the European market place is divided, reports the research organisation Datamonitor after conducting a major survey for PeopleSoft, the leading provider of global eBusiness solutions.

Involving interviews with 200 business leaders from seven countries and a variety of vertical markets, the survey aimed to assess the thinking and factors that are driving the development of eCommerce in Europe. It found that while 59% of respondents would use the Internet for large volume transactions and payments, a notable number (41%) would not.

For the IT industry this result indicates that the security of the technology needs to be improved and that the marketplace needs to be educated about its efficacy. It also questions a tendency in the industry to assume that a high take-up rate of this technology will automatically develop, delivering a firm reminder to the industry that some aspects of the technology are still considered to be unproven.

In the country analysis, respondents from Sweden (75%), France (72%) and Germany (69%) led the way in trusting the Internet, while those from Italy (62%) and The Netherlands (57%) said they would not follow suit. The strongest voice of mistrust for the Internet came from Spain, with an astonishing 83% against using it for large volume transactions and payments.

In the vertical market analysis respondents from the IT, Agriculture/Mining/Construction and Services industries were divided in their views. Clear statements of confidence were made by the majorities in the Utilities/Transport/Telco industry (68%), in Retail/Wholesale (61%) and in Manufacturing (61%).

The market that leads the field, however, is Financial Services, where 69% of respondents have no qualms about using the Internet for administering their business. Coming from an industry that is heavily regulated and therefore deeply critical of security issues, this response is an encouraging trailblazer.

Commenting on the survey results, Rob Cools, Director of Product Marketing PeopleSoft for EMEA, said: "This survey gives a strong indication that there are large sectors of the market that still need to be educated about the benefits of eBusiness. PeopleSoft is committed to capturing these sectors by demonstrating to these businesses how much they stand to gain from our Internet-based solutions."

Sohrab Torabi, eCommerce Analyst at Datamonitor, said: "That only 59% of Europe`s largest companies would feel comfortable using the Internet should be of some concern for vendors selling into the B2B space. Those industries that are most at ease with large volume payments have experience in the processes of EDI. Those without this familiarity will need to be persuaded that the perceived risk of transacting between business partners online will be far outweighed by business benefit. It is critical for the long-term success of B2B eCommerce that leading companies from ALL industries bring their trading liquidity to the Internet business community."

About PeopleSoft

PeopleSoft is a leading provider of eBusiness applications that enable people- customers, employees, and suppliers -to power the Internet.

PeopleSoft`s pure Internet Customer Relationship Management, Supply Chain Management, and Enterprise Management solutions provide the industry`s most open and flexible eCommerce platform. PeopleSoft employs more than 7,000 people worldwide, including 2,400 eBusiness consultants. More than 4,500 organisations in 107 countries run on PeopleSoft eBusiness applications. For more information: www.peoplesoft.com

In EMEA, PeopleSoft has operations in the UK, France, Germany, Spain, The Netherlands, Belgium, Switzerland, Italy and South Africa.

CONTACT: Rob Cools, Director of Product Strategy EMEA, PeopleSoft Tel: +31 0204625400 e-mail: Rob_cools@peoplesoft.com Will Clarke, Insight Marketing & Communications Tel: +44 (0)1625 500 800 e-mail: wclarke@insightmkt.com

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