Business to consumer

Dot.com companies are being crucified on the public markets. The collapse of Boo.com and ongoing financial troubles at Letsbuyit.com have left investors feeling burned. Irish-owned firms EBid.ie, Adornis.com and Blackstar have already been hit and there is little chance of a rapid recovery in the sector.

Business to business

The promise of cost savings in purchasing and supply of goods through Internet exchanges briefly caught investors attention last year. Fyffes share price soared due to its world of fruit exchange, but investors disinterest soon followed and the price slumped.

Telecoms operators

The huge price paid by operators for licences which offer high-speed Internet connections over mobile devices saddled corporate giants such as British Telecom with billions in debt.

This has had a knock-on effect for smaller firms such as Formus Communications, the Denver-based telecoms group which runs its pan-European network from Dublin. Formus pulled two proposed Nasdaq flotations last year and subsequently scaled back its expansion plans.

Internet banking

The high cost of acquiring Internet customers and continued security fears have hit this sector hard. First-e, the Internet bank owned by the Dublin-based Enba group, announced a €70 million (£55 million) cost-cutting plan in Q4 and shed 69 full-time staff and 80 contract workers.

Speculation that the bank's merger with Spanish bank Uno-e is in trouble will make it a turbulent year for First-e.

Online recruitment

The proliferation of online recruitment firms in the Republic means this sector may face consolidation this year. Several large players such as Stepstone.ie and Monster.ie entered the market this year and are sure to pressure local operations such as Irishjobs.ie.

Infrastructure companies which develop technologies which lead to greater efficiency and can cut costs are likely to be among the hottest sectors this year.

Silicon companies which put intellectual property on chips and companies developing optical technologies are tipped to perform by many analysts.

Despite the volatility on world markets, there are several strong IPO candidates in the Republic. These include: [SBX]

Norkom Technologies; [SBX]

Fineous (formerly Managed Solutions Corporation); [SBX]

Orbiscom; [SBX]

Interactive Enterprises; [SBX]

Eurologic Systems; [SBX]

Cape Clear.