Value creation in dynamic customer- centric networks

Information technology increased the opportunities of business firms to create value. The complexity, the fragmented nature and the disorder of electronic markets, in concert with the need of customers to use compound products and services in order to achieve their expected outcomes, require the development of an effective integrating mechanism. This article presents the 'value integration model' as a mechanism for the configuration of compound offerings, the integration of disparate value chains and the coordination of business activities in electronic markets. The value integration model allows customers to configure networks of suppliers, intermediaries and other organizations, including public service agencies that dynamically collaborate to produce offerings that bring significant outcomes to customers. The article presents technological aspects of the model and evaluates the potential of Web services technologies to provide the technological infrastructure. The use of the model in the tourism sector is exhibited and discussed