Was the Internet the Only Option? Which Way Should Business and Information Systems Engineering Go?

Abstract

In the same way as production methods or dominant materials have been representative for entire eras so far, important parts of present-day life can indeed be identified with the Internet. Multimedia-based communication results from digitalization, and the almost cambrian-like explosion of end-user devices and services revolutionized the organization of everyone's work and leisure. After the internationalization of telecommunication, which was organized nationally up to the 1990s, now standardization of business and private communcation and organization is under consideration. The article reviews the development of the Internet in order to gain a better view on the proceeding development by affirming the past. The analogy to problems and questions of business and information systems engineering (BISE) establishes the reference to present-day issues.

Business and Information Systems Engineering: A Complementary Approach to Information Systems – What We Can Learn from the Past and May Conclude from Present Reflection on the Future

“…At first, there was competition to find the best way to connect computers. The success of the Internet and the advances of the World Wide Web sped up the commoditization of IT (Müller, 2009). Later on, the focus shifted toward "thematic networks"; for example, virtual connections of actors who collectively develop pharmaceuticals, construct automobiles across complex value networks, and bundle market power in procurement networks (Szyperski et al, 2009).…”