B2B networks are resurging as a vital model for partner enablement and ecosystem management, driven by global initiatives like PEPPOL and ViDA.
Networks have always been instrumental in B2B integration. They were the original model before the Internet became as accessible as it is today; they are how VANs started, for example. At the start of the year, we offered predictions and insights on digital trends. Halfway through 2024, we’re following up on our digital transformation predictions and looking to what’s next. In a new series of interviews, Axway’s experts discuss everything from quantum computing to federated API management, accelerated cloud adoption, ongoing security struggles, and the practical applications of AI. Here, Axway’s B2B Integration General Manager JB Bentz explains that the network model is experiencing a comeback as business partners see its value in supporting their complex ecosystems.
Read more about B2B VANs on the blog
Now what we're seeing is a push more towards that network model for efficiency's sake in partner enablement and partner life cycle management; maintenance of your partner ecosystem becomes much easier because of the network effect.
So, you're seeing initiatives like PEPPOL, that's being adopted across the globe. You're also seeing other initiatives like DBNA here in the U.S., the Digital Business Network Alliance, or even to a certain extent, the new e-invoicing mandate in France, known as PDP, also based on a network model to help simplify those partner connections and streamline how you communicate with all of your partners.
And then in the future, we're seeing an even bigger push for that across all of Europe that's known as ViDA, the VAT in the Digital Age initiative, which will dictate how all of this gets done across Europe.
They're saying by 2030, but I'm guessing it'll be a little bit later than that. And, again, that'll be just a really big push for a network mentality for all your partner connectivity across all of Europe, and then it'll just grow from there.”
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