Knowledge Intermediation

IntroductIon Since knowledge is increasingly regarded as the central source of competitive advantage, a " cognitive " interpretation of business activities becomes vital. With regard to this, the flourishing field of knowledge management (KM) provides useful insights into approaches to a systematic and explicit management of knowledge. Furthermore, the development of Internet technologies raises expectations of new opportunities to acquire, process, and distribute knowledge. Little research has, however, been done on the new businesses that may originate from a combination of KM practices and the use of new technologies. In particular, since the activities of knowledge creation and sharing are not bound to the single organisation, there is room for the development of innovative services that enable a " knowledge-based use " of network technologies such as the Internet. In fact, an increasing number of examples of innovative " knowledge-intensive " firms based on the Web can be found, but there is the need for better understanding of the contents and issues associated with such emerging ventures. This article focuses on the business of " knowledge intermediation " via the Web, that is, the provision of technology-based services designed to support knowledge flows between organisations. In detail, the aims are: (1) to explore the development of a new business model that combines the use of information and communication technologies with a KM capability; (2) to suggest preliminary classifications; and (3) to highlight possible economic opportunities and problems as well.