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Rental Roundtable Highlights
On the Horizon: Internet "Intermediaries" Between Rental Companies, Customers
 One new area of speculation is whether intermediaries - companies that use the Internet to consolidate numerous rental companies' products and services - will become a force in the equipment rental business.
Opinions Divided on Subject
The emergence of these online intermediaries, or consolidators, could provide contractors with a single source for price and product comparisons. Some rental companies say there's a place for such firms, while others doubt their viability and say they work counter to rental companies' interests.
No: Seen as Intrusion
Such companies promote the commoditization of rental companies' offerings, says Douglas Dougherty, Vice President of Fleet Operations for United Rentals. "I don't think as a national rental company that's the kind of thing that we want to participate in," Dougherty says. "We work very hard to build a profile, an image, a brand, and we believe there's a difference for our customers in doing business with United Rentals as opposed to another rental company."
Furthermore, online intermediaries "want to come between us and our customer," Dougherty says. "I don't really see the market developing that way."
Yes: Source of Additional Business?
GE's Moore, on the other hand, sees a role for such services. He compares it to rental companies that currently bring GE Power Systems additional business.
"It's business that my own sales force or sales channels didn't identify," Moore says. "And to the extent that these intermediaries can bring me those kinds of customers, in the off season when my fleet's not moving, I may be willing to participate to a limited extent in those."
Moore compares it to an advertisement in an industry magazine. It's an "industry alliance with a market maker," he says. "And while you may not want to be there all the time, there are cases when you're going to want to, maybe in a small way."
New vs. Established
As the recent failures of dot-coms in numerous industries shows, companies with real-world resources may be better positioned than new, online-only players to survive for the long haul. That's certainly the belief of many of the equipment rental executives at the CIMA roundtable.
"There's been a lot of noise, a lot of ideas and a lot of drama out there in the market," says United's Milne. "But the companies that have successfully used the Internet are companies like General Electric, which have bricks and mortar to support the implementation of an additional distribution channel."
"When you look at the intermediaries and aggregators that try and act as the middle person on the Internet, they're no different than a broker in the resale of used equipment," he says. "Ultimately, we should be able to do it better, and do it internally, and we will. They may lead the charge from a technology point of view, but that won't last forever."
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