Only a few vendors have the capabilities to succeed in the Web services market. But a larger market called dynamic business webs will emerge from the Web services category, creating future opportunities for vendors and users.

Core Topic Electronic Workplace: Internet and Network Computing Platforms and Infrastructure Strategies Key Issue What are the ramifications of the Internet and network computing architecture battles between Sun, Microsoft, IBM, Netscape and Oracle? Note 1 Easy DBWs DBWs are flexible, Internet-based relationships and solutions that allow enterprises to: Create new products and services faster than existing methods Reach new customers and add new relationships economically Change existing relationships dynamically Engage in multiple e-business models simultaneously Provide customized experiences for partners and customers Other benefits include faster time to market, convergence of disparate e-business initiatives, significant reduction in total cost of ownership (TCO), real-time updating and dynamic linking of partner and client systems, and easy-to-use software tailored for business people rather than IT staffs. Source: Gartner Research

Dynamic business webs (DBWs) represent a new technology that automates the process of linking business partners and their core competencies across a value chain quickly and efficiently on the Internet (see Note 1). The role of DBWs is to offer a new style of application, based on Web services, that can be shared among all members of an extended value chain. DBWs enable members to interconnect applications and Web services, and allow new members to join the value chain dynamically.

DBWs also enable the business processes that link these partners (e.g., content, data, business logic, and pricing) to be updated dynamically; hence reducing costly, time-intensive development efforts. In short, DBWs have the potential to replace hard-coded connections and traditional applications with dynamic Web services from internal and external resources.

This technology provides consumers and businesses with access to up-to-date, real-time information. The information is provided through applications that dynamically link data and transfer it back and forth between members within the value chain using XML and other standards-based technologies. DBWs will have broad implications for all enterprises, but are ideally suited for those that have rapidly changing applications, data, systems and partners. Historically, enterprises have had to update these complex relationships by hard-coding single-use applications and relationships, but today these can be done using automation technologies found within DBWs.

Web Services: The Foundation of Dynamic Business Webs
DBWs could not exist without the emerging phenomenon of Web services. Web services are loosely coupled software components delivered over the Internet via standards-based technologies like XML and Simple Object Access Protocol (SOAP). These services have certain basic requirements, such as lookup and discovery (a mechanism for locating services and discovering what they do), description (a way of describing what input and outputs the services recognize), transport (the means of sending messages between services), environment (the facility for developing and deploying the services), and eventually, event notification (a mechanism for broadcasting a notable change in the service environment).

Gartner estimates that the software component of Web services (excluding services) will represent a $1.7 billion market by 2003. These estimates are based on each company's current emphasis on its Web services platform, adoption cycles associated with new technologies and time-to-market issues. The DBW market will grow out of this Web services market, providing opportunities and increased efficiencies for vendors, service providers and enterprises alike.

Dynamic Business Web Scenarios
Consider a PC manufacturer that needs to create custom Web sites for all its corporate customers. Today, that company would need to custom-code each page to reflect the appropriate inventory and billing terms for each customer. If anything changed in the relationship, a human developer would have to modify the hard-coded Web page. Using DBWs, business managers would be able to create new DBWs in a fraction of the time it would take programmers to custom-code the page. Also, because DBWs are built modularly using Web services, changes are reflected throughout the value chain instantly and automatically. This could include new pricing discounts, inventory changes and entire new Web service offerings.

Or take the example of an industrial company that needs to purchase a direct material, such as benzene, to produce its finished goods. The company may look to purchase from a highly visible chemical industry leader. As the company selects the products from an electronic marketplace, it will also specify the required terms of the purchase — such as shipping availability and delivery options, payment financing, casualty insurance and governmental compliance for safe transport. All these interrelated requirements need to be satisfied before a purchase transaction is committed.

These two scenarios may require coordinating the processing of transaction-supporting Web services between internal fulfillment services and external services, such as:

• An insurance policy to insure the product being shipped
• A financing service to ensure payment according to vendor terms
• A transportation service to guarantee timely shipment and delivery of product
• A regulatory service to ensure compliance with government safety requirements