Exploiting the potential offered by the Internet also requires tools. At the most basic level -- bandwidth. Observers reckon that amid all the chaos, companies selling these basic tools will positively see another day.

While there is truth in that belief, there is also a catch. Too many people selling pick axes and shovels will mean there is a very real chance that a good many will have to search for another way of life. Like the cliche goes, not everybody can be a hero. Somebody has to sit by the road and clap as the heroes pass by.

That is precisely the problem with bandwidth. There are too many people selling it. This threatens to make a profitable business horribly competitive. The business is on its way to becoming commoditised. Survival in any commodity business needs incredible skill and calls for creating new models.

The first sign of things to come was obvious when Internet Service providers (ISPs) that mushroomed in the US a couple of years started bleeding. Some shut shop. Those that remained did so on the back of insane numbers. Pretty much the same thing may be happening in the bandwidth market. At best, another two years before there is a glut. Traditional telecom companies in the business trying desperately to brand their services, may be up against a wall. As for the upstarts, they’re in it knowing full well what the dangers are.

Who manages to survive and how they do it, should be interesting to watch. Even as this battle takes off, there is another deeper and more intense one to be fought. There is no denying the dominance of the US when it comes to the Internet and e-commerce. It’s not a function of chance that the US is where it is today. It happened because of careful planning and huge investments.