1990s Events |
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In the '90s, an increasing number of Fortune 500 companies have some kind of EDI program underway, and EDI is growing rapidly throughout all phases of industry.
The major technological advance for EDI has been the advent of the commercial Internet. Companies can now use products, like the Netscape CommerceXpert products, to handle EDI-based transactions over the Internet with a high degree of security and reliability. This is dramatically driving down the costs of doing EDI and is creating further demand for EDI.
It's important to understand that EDI is not a technology itself. Rather, it is essentially a set of technologies designed to allow companies to use the ANSI X12 standards to automate certain aspects of their businesses.
In a larger sense, EDI is a relationship opportunity. Some experts say
that EDI is 80 percent business and 20 percent technical, meaning that
the business relationship must be crafted along with the new technology
to support EDI.