The Internet has been emerging incredibly during the past decade. It has created new ways of communication and doing business. The companies operating via the Internet are confronted with speedy changes in their environment.
This term paper analyses the German Internet service provider web.de AG. First of all, the current industry and market of electronic commerce are subject to description. This is followed by a presentation of the current situation of web.de and its competitors.
The analytical chapter is split into two major parts: The qualitative analysis examines the environmental forces whereas the quantitative analysis puts emphasis on financial figures and ratios. Afterwards three options (short-term, mid-term and long-term) of future development of web.de are discussed. Finally, there is an outlook on the web service industry as a whole and some recommendations for web.de in particular. These recommendations are tested and modelled using a comprehensive spreadsheet which results in a three-year forecast.
Table of Contents
1 The Industry and the Market
1.1 Internet in Germany
1.2 Freemail Market in Germany
2 The Companies
2.1 Similarities
2.2 Target Company: Web.de AG
2.3 Selected Competitors
2.3.1 Freenet.de AG
2.3.2 United Internet AG
2.4 Other Competitors
3 Qualitative Analysis
3.1 Macro-Environment Scope: PEST Analysis
3.1.1 Political and Legal Factors
3.1.2 Economic Factors
3.1.3 Social Factors
3.1.4 Technological Factors
3.2 web.de scope: Ansoff matrix
3.3 Critical Review of Applied Models
4 Quantitative Analysis
4.1 Horizontal Analysis
4.2 Vertical Analysis
4.3 Key Financial Ratios
4.4 Cross-sectional Analysis
4.4.1 Definition of the Benchmark
4.4.2 Comparison of Web.de with the Chosen Competitors
4.5 Critical Review of Applied Models
5 Strategic Options (Scenarios)
5.1 Short-term Option: Acquire New Paying Customers
5.2 Mid-term Option: Focus on B2B
5.3 Long-term Option: Expansion
5.4 Evaluation of Web.de’s Vision
6 Outlook and Recommendations
6.1 Industry Outlook
6.2 Recommendations and Forecast for Web.de
Project Objective and Themes
This project aims to conduct a comprehensive business analysis of the German Internet service provider web.de AG by evaluating its current market position, financial health, and strategic future development options within the evolving Internet industry.
- Industry and market analysis of electronic commerce in Germany.
- Strategic assessment using PEST analysis and the Ansoff matrix.
- In-depth quantitative financial evaluation through horizontal, vertical, and cross-sectional analysis.
- Development of strategic scenarios (short, mid, and long-term) for future growth.
- Forecasting and recommendations based on industry trends and company data.
Excerpt from the Book
3.2 web.de scope: Ansoff matrix
The task of the management at the business level is to achieve and maintain sustainable competitive advantage (Porter, 1998). Therefore it is important to identify the possible strategic development directions. These possibilities can be assessed by analysing the product and market segments. The key message of the chosen concept of Ansoff (1988) is that market growth should be achieved in line with own capabilities.
Existing products for existing markets: For web.de it is essential to keep pace with new technology. Customers can easily change to other providers thus it is important to continuously offer new features and improve service availability and stability. As the existing products must by adapted all along consolidation does not mean stagnancy in this case. Even consolidation requires a lot of resources of personnel and money.
Market penetration is about increasing market share with current products. On the one hand this is possible for web.de because they have a good user’s awareness (AGIREV, 2003) and good test results (Stiftung Warentest, 2003). If the whole market grows by some degree web.de gains its slice of it (absolute growth). On the other hand, for web.de it is hard to increase market share (relative growth) because there are dominant players like T-Online. Nevertheless, further development of products is required not even to loose market share.
Summary of Chapters
1 The Industry and the Market: Provides an overview of the Internet and freemail market trends in Germany, emphasizing the growth potential of e-commerce.
2 The Companies: Introduces web.de AG and its key competitors, Freenet.de AG and United Internet AG, highlighting their business models and market roles.
3 Qualitative Analysis: Evaluates the macro-environment through PEST analysis and explores strategic directions using the Ansoff matrix.
4 Quantitative Analysis: Conducts a detailed financial performance assessment including horizontal, vertical, and cross-sectional benchmarking against competitors.
5 Strategic Options (Scenarios): Discusses specific growth scenarios for web.de, ranging from customer acquisition and B2B focus to international expansion.
6 Outlook and Recommendations: Synthesizes industry trends to provide actionable strategic recommendations and a three-year financial forecast for web.de.
Keywords
web.de AG, Internet service provider, e-commerce, competitive strategy, PEST analysis, Ansoff matrix, financial analysis, business performance, freemail, digital telephony, B2B, strategic planning, market penetration, Germany, ICT market.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the primary focus of this business analysis?
The work focuses on analyzing the business performance and competitive strategy of the German Internet service provider web.de AG in the context of the rapidly changing Internet industry.
What are the core thematic areas covered in this report?
The report covers industry market dynamics, competitive benchmarking, qualitative environmental analysis, and quantitative financial evaluation of web.de and its main competitors.
What is the main objective or research question of the project?
The objective is to evaluate web.de's current situation and provide a strategic outlook for future development, modeled through a three-year forecast based on identified market opportunities.
Which scientific methods are utilized for the analysis?
The study employs a PEST framework for environmental analysis, an Ansoff matrix for strategic direction, and standard financial analysis tools, including horizontal, vertical, and ratio analysis.
What topics are addressed in the main body of the work?
The main body examines the market environment, compares web.de with Freenet.de and United Internet, performs a detailed financial breakdown, and proposes strategic scenarios such as B2B focus and expansion into Eastern Europe.
Which keywords best characterize this project?
The project is characterized by terms such as web.de AG, competitive strategy, e-commerce, financial analysis, market penetration, and business performance.
How does the author evaluate web.de's long-term vision?
The author considers web.de's vision of becoming the world's largest Internet telephony provider within 10 years to be "completely immoderate and excessive" due to current customer behavior and technological limitations.
What specific growth strategy does the author recommend for the mid-term?
The author strongly recommends intensifying the acquisition of small and medium-sized enterprises (SME) as customers, as this segment is profitable and web.de possesses the necessary solutions.
- Quote paper
- Dipl.-Ing., MBA Andreas Birkholz (Author), 2004, Business Analysis of web.de AG, Munich, GRIN Verlag, https://www.grin.com/document/32532