Title: A knowledge dimension associated with e-business models: a study of internet adoption amongst Australian wineries

Authors: Bill Martin, Carmine Sellitto

Addresses: School of Business Information Technology, RMIT University, GPO Box 2476V, Melbourne, Victoria, 3001, Australia. ' School of Information Systems, Victoria University, PO Box 14428 MCMC, Melbourne, Victoria, 8001, Australia

Abstract: Case studies are used to examine and classify e-business adoption amongst wineries located in the Australian state of Victoria. Two atomic e-business models are identified – Direct-to-Customer and Intermediary – as the only types amongst six cases studied. Ancillary to examining the e-business characteristics of these wineries, the study of internet adoption also allowed a knowledge-based dimension of the wineries to be examined. The wineries are viewed as the wine industry|s dominant cluster entity and are found to combine traditional and electronic activities in emergent e-business models that exhibit key characteristics of knowledge-based enterprises.

Keywords: e-business models; tacit knowledge; explicit knowledge; internet adoption; SMEs; wineries; Australia; collaboration; relationship building; clusters; electronic business; knowledge-based enterprises; wine industry.

DOI: 10.1504/IJIEM.2004.005571

International Journal of Internet and Enterprise Management, 2004 Vol.2 No.4, pp.405 - 424

Published online: 19 Oct 2004 *

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