Ireland's peripherality is irrelevant in the new e-commerce age and the Republic is well-placed to become the Internet capital of Europe, a new report by Andersen management consultancy states. The Minister for Public Enterprise, Ms O'Rourke, who launched the report yesterday, said it would be a spur for the Government and the business community in highlighting that a global market was at Ireland's fingertips in e-commerce trade. The report states that, worldwide, e-commerce transactions were expected to grow from the 1996 level of $2.6 billion (£1.79 billion) to over $200 billion by 2001.

In a survey of over 300 European senior managers, 94 per cent of Irish respondents agreed that their businesses would be more reliant on e-commerce in the future. But Ireland was in danger of being bypassed as a centre for Internet-driven business, the report states, because, at 4 per cent, there was a relatively low penetration of Internet accessibility and use. Mr Seamus Mulconry, who presented the report, said that Ireland had "a major window of opportunity" in the next 18 months to establish itself as an e-commerce centre against competition from the Netherlands.

"We are hoping that Irish business will wake up to an understanding of what is involved. It is not a technology issue; it is a strategy issue," he said. He cited a Forfas analysis of the market which predicted that 40,000 jobs could be created in the sector.

"This is something that is moving very quickly and we have to move on very quickly if we are to benefit," he said.

The Internet Service Provider market was growing at 50 per cent a year, which showed the opportunity of establishing mirror sites for major software companies.

"It makes a lot of sense for a company to move some of its infrastructure over here, so avoiding the clogging of all of its lines to the US," he said.

He said that software distribution was ideally suited to the Internet. The computer company, Dell, had paved the way in providing the processes behind its website, including telephone sales and only assembling computers when orders were received. "The challenge for Irish companies is that they are going to have to get process re-engineering behind the website," he said.

The survey found that lack of regulation, the need to put in place the SET (secure electronic transaction) protocol and the necessity of proper education and training as the main setbacks to e-commerce growth.