United Parcel Service Inc. is creating a
subsidiary, UPS e-Ventures, to seek out new Internet-related
business opportunities.
UPS e-Ventures will identify and bring to market companies that
will serve the needs of businesses that operate on the Internet,
UPS said Monday. Some will be UPS subsidiaries, but others may be
spun off as independent companies.
The first company to be developed by UPS e-Ventures will be UPS
e-Logistics, which will offer a package of services - from
warehousing to order fulfillment to customer service - for small-
and medium-size companies that sell their products on the Web. UPS
already offers such services to its larger customers through UPS
Worldwide Logistics.
"UPS recognizes the power the Internet has to impact
business-to-business and business-to-consumer commerce," said Mark
Rhoney, a 25-year UPS veteran who will be president of UPS
e-Ventures.
Rhoney most recently served as vice president of electronic
commerce marketing for the Atlanta-based UPS.
Monday's announcement puts UPS in competition with other
shippers like Federal Express, which also runs warehouses and fills
orders for businesses that don't want to handle such tasks on their
own.
Shares of UPS were down 56 cents to $55.81 in afternoon
trading on the New York Stock Exchange.
