With the current growth of the Internet, we expect significant changes in how and to what extent companies acquire business information. By comparing two studies on information seeking by small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) carried out in 1982 and 2003 respectively, and comparing the results with other studies, this paper indicates that the reality is rather to the contrary. SMEs remain remarkably stable in their information seeking behaviour, in the sources they use and in the problems they face. The paper concludes with a discussion on the likely causes of this consistency and its consequences for online intermediaries.
DJB Associates (1996), The Future of Electronic Information Intermediaries, UK Serials Group and Joint Information Systems Committee, London.
2.
EC (2002), Observatory of European SMEs 2002, 6th Report of the European Observatory of SMEs, European Commission, Brussels.
3.
FaulknerW.SenkerJ. (1995), Knowledge Frontiers: Public Sector Research and Industrial Innovation in Biotechnology, Engineering Ceramics, and Parallel Computing, Clarendon Press, Oxford.
4.
GümbelR. (1985), Handel, Markt und Ökonomik, Gabler, Wiesbaden.
5.
JulienP.-A. (1995), ‘New technologies and technological information in small businesses’, Journal of Business Venturing, Vol 10, pp 459–475.
KraaijenbrinkJ.WijnhovenF.GroenA. (2003), Data Collection and Analysis: Scientific Report on KI in Practice, GROWTH Project No G1RD-CT-2002-00700: Knowledge Integration and Network eXpertise (KINX), Enschede.
8.
OECD (2001), Science, Technology and Industry Scoreboard 2001: Towards a Knowledge-Based Economy, e-Book, Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, Paris.
9.
RogersE.M. (1995), Diffusion of Innovations, 4th edition, The Free Press, New York.
10.
RoosendaalH.E.GeurtsP.A.T.M.Van der VetP.E. (2001), ‘Developments in scientific communication: Considerations on the value chain’, Information Services and Use, Vol 21, pp 13–32.
11.
RoseF. (1999), The Economics, Concept, and Design of Information Intermediaries, Physica-Verlag, Heidelberg, New York.
12.
RosenbloomR.S.WolekF.W. (1967), Technology, Information, and Organization: Information Transfer in Industrial R&D, US Department of Commerce / National Bureau of Standards / Institute for Applied Technology, Washington, DC.
13.
RothwellR.DodgsonM. (1994), ‘Innovation and size of firm’, in DodgsonM.RothwellR., eds, The Handbook of Industrial Innovation, Edward Elgar, Cheltenham.
14.
ScarboroughN.M.ZimmererT.W. (2000), Effective Small Business Management, 6th edition, Prentice Hall, Upper Saddle River, NJ.
15.
ShapiroC.VarianH.R. (1999), Information Rules: A Strategic Guide to the Network Economy, Harvard Business School Press, Boston, MA.
16.
ShuchmanH.L. (1981), Information Transfer in Engineering, The Futures Group, Glastonbury, CT.
17.
TrottF. (1986), Information for Industry: A Study of the Information Needs of Small Firms and the Relevance of Public Information Services, British Library, Cambridge.
18.
WarnkenK. (1991), The Information Brokers: How to Start and Operate Your Own Fee-Based Service, R.R. Bowker, New York.
19.
WarrK.M. (1994), Paying for Business Information, Effective Technology Marketing, Grimsby.
20.
WhiteB.BennettR.ShipseyR. (1982), Information and the Small Manufacturing Firm, Capital Planning Information, Edinburgh.
