During the past 15 years, civilization has changed at an unprecedented rate - its as if a new continent has been discovered and the impetus for exploration has come from business. People with courage and curiosity are changing the way of life on the old continents irrevocably. The only difference is that the new continent - the new, interlinked, web-shaped economy of the 21st century - has no land. Yet its economic, political, social and business consequences are real. The new and invisible continent where Microsofts business far outweighs the GNP of most nations has been commented on, but until now the links between the forces that created it have not been fully understood. This book sets out to provide solutions to successfully integrating the old and the new, and outlines strategies to settle the new continent by building golden platforms - standards and agreements that set its limits and structures.