E-Health's Second Mover Advantage

The revolution that the Internet is bringing to hospital supply is really two revolutions, one transaction-oriented, the other information-based. MedAssets hopes to capitalize on opportunities in the transaction-based realm by, in effect, applying Internet technology to two relatively traditional service businesses, group purchasing, and capital equipment refurbishing and resale. MedChannel, by contrast, is trying to create an infochannel that promotes wide efficiencies across a broadly defined supply chain, from OEM to end user. Both companies face a challenge: that of coming late to a B2B e-commerce market that is evolving rapidly. Their hope: a kind of "Second Mover Advantage", under which the early B2B leaders open doors to customers that both companies can more easily walk through.