The Internet is a paradox. It was originally conceived and built on a non-profit basis, and (thus far at least) few “Internet companies” have reported sustained profits. Yet scores and perhaps hundreds of billions of dollars are resting upon the conviction that the Net will generate enormous returns to those who unlock its commercial potential. The resolution of this paradox clearly has tremendous implications for investors.
Is the Internet an unprecedented bonanza of opportunity? Has it been hyped into a bubble of speculative excess? Should investors change their principles in response of its development?
This six-part report addresses these questions. Part I defines e-infrastructure, e-business and e-commerce, and sets out some economic principles which appear to underlie them. Part II sketches some of the consequences of these fundamentals for the operations of Internet Service Providers (ISPs), and Part III does so for e-business and e-commerce ventures. Part IV sets out the criteria – and their consequent dangers – which market participants are using to evaluate Internet and technology stocks, and Part V reviews the impact of technology upon consumers, businesses and investors. Finally, drawing from the findings of Parts I-V, Part VIdescribes and justifies the approach that Leithner & Co. is taking with respect to the Internet and Net-related phenomena.
What Is It?
Gradual deregulation and very rapid advances in technology are transforming telecommunications, such that the volume of traffic is increasing exponentially and the cost of service delivery is falling sharply. An unintended and largely unanticipated consequence of these developments is the Internet: a network of personal and mainframe computers which, virtually instantaneously and at negligible marginal cost, can distribute almost limitless amounts of information around the world.
A network is a set of points between which goods, services or information can be sent. Examples include road, canal, rail and air transport infrastructure; water, sewerage, gas and electricity grids; fixed, mobile and satellite telephone systems; and radio, television and cable broadcasters.
See Full PDF here: The-Internet-and-Value-Investing
Via: csinvesting
