Tom,

  Your presuming the end-user manager doesn't need a show to purchase
e-services or that such a show wouldn't be based on a hardware vendor.
Perhaps your right, but an e-services oriented show would be attractive to
bring end-user managers together with e-service providers.  If HP wants to
be included, then they have to find a way to associate their image with
e-services - and a show that focused on HP hosted e-services would help do
that!

  Besides, I think IT managers should and will continue to plan an
important consulting role in the decision making process.  It may not
always be recognized, but at the current level of the technology, IT still
has an important contribution to make in successful business use of
e-services.

  However, overall I agree, as Internet services mature, a lot of change
will come to the IT landscape.

Richard G.

Tom Brandt wrote:
> ...
>
> What this implies is that application vendors such Mitchell-Humphrey,
> Smith-Gardner, etc., will have no reason to come to hardware-centric shows
> such as HPWorld, because their target audience no longer includes the
> traditional IT manager of computing infrastructure, who currently make up a
> considerable number of HPWorld attendees.  The target audience of
> internet-hosted applications will consist exclusively of the end-users of
> those applications. The traditional IT manager will have little reason to
> come to HPWorld, because they will not be managing much computing
> infrastructure.  This will leave only software development tool makers and
> some types of hardware vendors to market their wares to developers, ASPs,
> CSPs and ISPs.
>
> Whether HPWorld can survive with only tool vendors displaying to software
> developers and hardware vendors to ASPs, CSPs and ISPs is anyone's guess.
>
> The more interesting question is whether Interex itself can survive.  As
> many on this list know, HPWorld provides a critical chunk of Interex's
> revenues.  If HPWorld is considerably downsized or disappears because of
> apps-on-tap obviates the need for it, Interex itself may not be able
> continue.
>
> There will still be a demand for an IPROF-like conference, so software
> developers, ASPs, and CSPs can get together and discuss things with each
> other and with HP.  Some of the SIGs may survive also.  But, as has been
> discussed, no one really needs Interex to put on IPROF or run the SIGs
> (although I understand Alfredo was chewed out for saying something sort of
> similar).
>
> I imagine that many of you will disagree with me, and I look forward to
> reading your responses.
>
> Tom Brandt                            Northtech Systems, Inc.
> +1 734-769-5040                     313 N. First Street
> +1 734-769-5498 (FAX)            Ann Arbor, MI 48103

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