| This report provides the results of an Internet-specific study conducted at the end of last year. The end-user data sheds light on the focus and sophistication of enterprise websites. The survey results also provide information on the use of outside providers for website functionality, the type of providers used, and enterprises' reasons for outsourcing website functions.
Enterprise websites continue to become more sophisticated. Although the vast majority of websites in this market remained primarily informational in 2001, many decision-makers expected their firm to add customer service or personalization features this year. Integration with back-end systems is also expected to increase among enterprise sites, particularly with industry-specific systems and CRM systems.
Though survey results showed an increase in the outsourcing of website functions in 2001 over 2000 levels, increases are not expected to continue this year. Enterprises appear to be holding off on increasing their use of outsourcing providers for website infrastructure, likely a result of the persisting uncertainty in the economy. Those enterprises that did outsource website functionality in 2001 most often turned to ISPs or web service providers. Web outsourcing is likely to grow moving forward, as the value proposition and cost-benefit that outside providers offer should continue to attract enterprise firms.
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