Don’t become a technology dinosaur

For years, Charlie Gunningham has been suggesting we have an online business list in our WA Business News Book of Lists, and he took the opportunity at our recent forum to plug the idea again.

What he doesn't know is that we've already tried to do that.

But how do you draw up a list of online businesses, let alone try to rank them?

Online businesses vary across a vast spectrum and simply can't be compared.

How do you relate his real estate listings site, Aussiehome.com, with Ezyshop, with its physical warehouse that delivers groceries ordered via the internet? They are apples and oranges, so to speak.

And what is an online business? Is it one that operates a pure web-based interface with its customers, or a hybrid, like WA Business News, which has a weekly newspaper but also sends thousands of emails each day attracting readers to look at articles on our website?

It seems online business has grown so much it pervades all business in one way or another.

And all business had better get used to it.

It is also changing many things. The low cost of establishing a website means that traditional business has new competitors cropping up everywhere.

For me, it is shocking to learn how many of these sites earn revenue from advertising. They are not traditional retailers; they are media sites seeking an audience, just like a TV station.

And what they offer is not necessarily new; it may just be more convenient.

I've had a small but profound experience of this in the past week or so.

I'm not a big television viewer so I recently disposed of my aged VHS player and found myself without any way of recording any favourite shows that I missed.

It was a small move but occasionally it bugged me.

The recent introduction of iView on the ABC website, which allows me to catch up with programs I have missed, has been a revelation. This is television on demand delivered via what I consider a fairly average broadband plan.

I'm sure those with pay television will tell me that they've had this kind of service for years, but it really marked a key moment for me.

In just 25 years the need for a video recorder has gone from advanced technology to redundancy.

Just make sure your business isn't next.