EwayMEDIA is paving the way for small and medium size local companies to compete in the global market place by the power of the Internet.

Information technology is not only touching our lives but is also transforming industries from finance to manufacturing. The Internet, in particular, is creating an unprecedented global awareness and a global market. Unlike in the past where most global business occurred in the form of multinational foreign direct investment and trade of mass goods, the Internet is paving the way and making it possible for many companies, no matter how small, to compete in the global marketplace -- provided with the right tools -- without having to step foot outside their country.

The Internet is changing marketing equations and strategies. There is a shift in the fundamental relationship the consumers have with products and services. If marketing is about creating value in the minds of consumers, the Internet is tailored-made to provide information to assist consumers in their buying decisions. The emerging digital economy is fostering a new breed of customers who demand instant connectivity to companies, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. They want information from a single source, at a click of the button.

With the new business environment, vendors will require a different presentation and a different set of attributes to communicate to consumers. Business innovation in the Internet age will mean more value for less.

The Internet may be virtual but it's impact is very real.

Business2.0, in it's September 1999 issue, reported that in the United States, a study released by the University of Texas last June (funded by Cisco Systems) revealed that the Internet economy generated $301 billion in U. S. revenue in 1998 buoyed by a workforce of 1.2 million people.

As a platform for disseminating information and industry-specific content, web publishing is playing a significant role in defining the parameters and structures of e-commerce. Electronic portals or hubs for specific industries or interests are spawning new markets and bringing vendors and buyers closer than ever before.

B to B are being initiated and realized through the Web.

Business2.0 further reports that according to Forrester Research, online commerce that is business-to-business sales have already eclipsed the higher-profile business-to-consumer market by a long shot. Annual B-to-B e-commerce is projected to soar from $43 billion in 1998 to $1 trillion by 2003.

To fast forward and meet the unprecedented challenges and opportunities that the Internet has opened to developing countries like the Philippines, EwayMEDIA, the developer of this web site and publisher of East by Southeast WebZine, was recently established in Manila by Jun Alday.

We talked with Jun to find out what made him forego a prestigious international career in interior design and reinvent himself as a web developer-publisher.