A new study from Killen & Associates concludes that long-established
“blue chip” companies have a leg up on Internet startups in the race to
develop electronic commerce.
“Billers: EBPP Opportunities and Threats” says that Electronic Bill Presentment and Payments
(EBPP)is the key. Established utilities, telephone
companies, and financial services companies, for example, already have the
attention of the client through their monthly billing process. This
resource should prove invaluable for generating electronic commerce.
By 2003, 40,000 of the 100,000 service companies that issue the bulk of the
monthly bills will do so and receive payments monthly over the Internet.
This development predicts a change in how companies use the
billing/statement process, how they request payment, how they migrate
customers to self-service customer care systems, and how they reduce costs.
The study focuses on these companies and the opportunities and threats
they face as they or their competitors embrace EBPP by analyzing
market and business trends. The study’s target audience includes bank and
consulting firms, software, systems integration, and processing companies
as well as providers of billing, e-commerce, and payment and data
warehousing systems and services.
The report provides a view of how financial services, telephone, and
utility companies around the world are attempting to leverage their billing
processes to develop electronic commerce, obtain a competitive advantage in
marketplaces where they see competition, reduce costs, and obtain other
advantages.