Not sure about abrasive products marketed on the Internet? What went wrong in the collapse of the dot-coms? A new book by economist Stan Liebowitz offers an easy way to understand the current reality for both buyer and seller. Liebowitz shows how tried-and-true business methods are still valid business concepts despite the overly optimistic claims of fashionable economic theories.    For those who cruise the web regularly, Liebowitz helps to explain the apparent contrasting approaches to website development such as subscription- or advertising-based funding. In addition, he offers advice on what works well on the Internet and what doesn’t. Other topics include profit margins and copyright infringement.    Can abrasive products benefit from the network effects described by Liebowitz and Steve Margolis in earlier publications? Network effects are present when products become useful to consumers in proportion to the number of people using them. Less obvious are virutal networks that don't depend upon a physical item.    Liebotwitz concludes that the internet is no easy conucopia of profits. Companies need business models that include products that work and have efficient pricing mechanisms. Companies should refrain from wasting resources focused on being first, since being first nin not a key to long-term success.

Re-Thinking the Network Economy by Stan Liebowitz, AMACOM, Priced at $27 plus shipping from News Fax.

TABLE OF CONTENTS Chapter 1 Introduction Chapter 2 Basic Economics of the Internet Chapter 3 Racing to Be First: Faddish and Foolish Chapter 4 The (Non) Ubiquity of E-Tailing? Chapter 5 The Value-Profit Paradox: The Cruelty of Competition and Internet Margins Chapter 6 Can Advertising Revenues Support the Net? Chapter 7 Copyright and the Internet Chapter 8 Conclusion: Whither Supply and Demand?