European Management Journal Vol. 20, No. 4, pp. 329–339, 2002  2002 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved. Pergamon Printed in Great Britain 0263-2373/02 $22.00 + 0.00 PII: S0263-2373(02)00051-8 e-Partnering: Moving Bricks and Mortar Online ARD-PIETER DE MAN, Centre for Global Corporate Positioning, Amsterdam MARTEN STIENSTRA, Rotterdam School of Management, Erasmus University, Rotterdam HENK W. VOLBERDA, Rotterdam School of Management, Erasmus University, Rotterdam The Internet has been one of the main drivers behind the growth in number of partnerships. Although e-partnerships have received attention in research, this attention has mainly been reserved for the role of the Internet firm in the partnership and for technology partnerships. This article explores the use of e-partnerships by traditional, non-Internet related firms for business develop- ment. It describes the goals these firms try to achi- eve and the organizational form of the e-partner- ships they have chosen. A number of European cases illustrate the developments in this field and clarify the changes firms make to their e-partner- ships over time. Moreover, since companies are becoming embedded in an increasingly larger num- ber of e-partnerships, the concept of e-partnering ecosystems is explored.  2002 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved. Keywords: Alliances, Strategic renewal, e-Busi- ness, Internet Bricks and Mortar e-Partnering In the past few years the number of e-partnerships has increased fast. Ernst et al. (2001), using a broad definition of e-partnerships, estimate the total num- ber at 13,000 in 1999 alone. This increase is not lim- ited to companies active in the Internet sector. Estab- lished incumbents – bricks and mortar companies – in traditional industries have entered into e-partner- ships as well. There are a number of reasons why bricks and mortar companies have entered into e- partnerships. By means of partnerships companies can increase the traffic on their site; they allow them to conduct low risk business experiments; they give access to complementary competencies; they enable European Management Journal Vol. 20, No. 4, pp. 329–339, August 2002 329 companies to serve clients in foreign markets by means of local partners; and when other modes of organizing are impossible (e.g. when take-overs are prohibited by high share prices), a partnership can be a viable alternative. Recent analyses [see Bell (2001) and de Man and Van der Zee (2002) for an extensive overview] have described differences between traditional and Inter- net partnerships (Figure 1). It appears that e-partnering is not a completely new phenomenon. Some characteristics, like the increas- ing role of knowledge and other intangibles, have been drivers behind traditional partnerships as well. In e-partnerships these elements have become even more important, thus strengthening the trend towards partnering for knowledge creation and exchange. Likewise, traditional industries have moved from thinking in terms of bilateral partner- ships to the concept of networks. The main differ- ences include firstly, the role of uncertainty and entrepreneurship in e-partnerships as opposed to the more planned and predictable development of tra- ditional partnerships. The uncertainty of e-business requires e-partnerships to be managed in a more flexible way, with more emphasis on personal and relational control than on business plans, fixed for the long run. A second difference lies in the fact that traditional partnerships are mostly add-ons to exist- ing business, whereas partnerships are at the core of Internet business models from the outset. This article, using a narrow definition of e-partner- ships, studies e-partnerships that have been set up by traditional companies. In the first quarter of 1999 less than 20 such new partnerships were announced in the Financial Times; that year’s final quarter saw more than 70 announcements (and more than 25 for