The Demise of a Business-to-Business Portal

Abstract

This chapter describes the development and ultimate demise of the Bizewest portal in the Western Region of Melbourne, Australia. We argue that no matter how good the portal software, the final success or failure of the portal is primarily related to how well it is adopted and used. We begin by discussing the concept and benefits of Web portals, and especially those that are applicable to SMEs, as the Bizewest portal was primarily aimed at SMEs. We describe how the portal was conceived and developed, and the difficulty that its proponents had in persuading regional SMEs to change their business processes to make best use of online trading with each other. The research was socio-technical in nature, and was based on considering this innovation through the lens of innovation translation, informed by actor- network theory. Although Bizewest has ceased operations, the portal project must be considered a success, as it produced substantial benefits.