Introduction

Abstract

In 2000 the economic boom of the late 1990s turned into stagnation or recession. The enormous optimism of the last years of the second millennium turned into surprise. The boom years had been characterized by a strong belief in new technology. The new buzzword was ‘electronic business’ and the Internet and related technologies were expected to become engines of sustainable economic growth. Start-up e-business companies attracted extreme levels of interest among investors and the general public. Mobile phone companies, broadband operators and IT systems suppliers were other companies that were in focus.