By Marc Phillips

A few years ago, the term beyond the banner was referred relentlessly by online advertisers as the click through rates of banner ads were diminishing. Today, the portals are increasingly becoming the central consumer focus of time spent on the Internet.

With the rise of auctions as the next Internet application that portals are bolting onto their websites to ensure customers are given the most advanced functionality, it is important to understand the shift that has occurred from the Internet being a pure advertising medium to being one of increasing content.

Today, retail to consumer e-commerce outstrips online advertising by 20 times, so it is important that business concentrate seriously on the Internet as a platform for commerce. Auctions are undoubtedly popular, allowing consumers to buy verified goods at lower prices as well as connecting buyers and sellers efficiently. For publishers safeguarding classified income that has migrated online is a necessary strategy. For the ISP, the increase in user traffic attracts larger advertising revenue and adds to the environment of the portal.

But can the auction juggernaut sweep all before it? How many can be supported by the consumer market alone (ignoring the possibility of niche business oriented sites) will be fought out in the next few months. Price and range are the key reasons that consumers are using auctions. This is a level playing field in which the user can shop between any and all auction sites. In such a world brand differentiation on the basis of product offer will be critical.

With the time it takes to get beyond the auction, there are now portal headquarters and strategists looking at the next killer application. Jupiter Communications believes it will be bill presentment.

I feel that strategists should not forget that email is the killer applications and the virtual free email model is one of the most important elements of a portals longevity. Segmentation of email has begun and it is Microsoft who have led the charge beyond the auction with creating a marketspace for personal, liesure time emails. In the UK, Hotmail ran a successful campaign that invited users to create individual, weird or even sexy e-mail addresses. Personalising e-mail created huge interest for Hotmail as the next wave.

This process of invention may well be a necessary component of the next wave in the never ending portal race.

For more information contact APT Strategies at info@aptstrategies.com.au