In Hungary, tackling trust in a new service industry.

Online versions of newspapers and magazines are legacies of the Internet boom that are here to stay. Pressflex was founded in 1998 by print journalists asked to put their own publications online, who subsequently recognized that the global reach of the Internet and the common needs of most periodicals offered them a new business opportunity.

It developed software to meet basic publishing needs, accompanied by a series of design templates that customers can adapt. This lowers site development costs and allows the company to compete with local providers in Western markets. The company hosts clients' newspaper and magazine web sites on a central server; clients can manage their sites in their own countries, via a password-protected Internet site.

A major obstacle has been to convince developed countries that services from a transition economy will be reliable and quality-oriented. Pressflex fought hard to get its first clients in each market, learning that the only way to make inroads was by hiring local staff. Salaries and commissions to professional salespeople is Pressflex's biggest expense to date. Since clients only recognize references from their own country, Pressflex learned that it has to concentrate on a few...