Professional information services : the activity of hosts

Taken from an inquiry realized in 1988 among 45 French hosts, the total turnover of 1.8 milliard francs can be analysed into 1 milliard for on-line dissemination, 17 million hours of consultation, 1800 employees. The turnover of the whole French market generated by professional or specialized on-line dissemination can be estimated at 1.3 milliard francs in 1988, essentially for viewdata. Teletel has been the pace-setter and has helped the development of a lot of services having an easy access : information in real-time as stock-market services, implementations where the heart of the service is not only information but also transaction and interactivity, private implementations for firms. Since 1988, some of the traditional databanks, so far limited by the complexity of their access, can find new outlets thanks to the professional videotex with adaptable tarifs.
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