The PRNewswire lead that reported on the presentation was:

DETROIT, June 7 /PRNewswire/ -- Speaking before the Automotive Press Association here today, AutoNation's Chief Executive Officer, Michael J.
Jackson, said that automotive manufacturers and large "e-dealers" are replacing online referral and broker services as the dominant players in online automotive retailing.

The entire PRNewswire article can be read online at AutoNation's website (or you should be able to read it here at Yahoo).

Excerpts from the PRNewswire article, including some of Mike Jackson's comments to the Automotive Press and some of my thoughts -- in italics -- about his statements (I added the bold facing):

The AutoNation CEO said "e-dealers" have several important advantages when compared to referral and broker services.  "Large e-dealers, like AutoNation, offer Internet shoppers access to real vehicles at real prices because we own the inventory at dealer cost.  We can conduct the entire transaction online, without a middleman, and we have the bricks-and mortar facilities necessary to provide long-term service."

Hey Mike, neither the vehicles nor the prices in my online buying experience with AutonationDirect.com were real.  I was able, however, to conduct the entire transaction online; you got my credit card number, name, email address, home and work telephone numbers and a Noosie while all I got were some emails that explained why the 2000 Honda Odyssey EX that I had ordered was not being sold to me.  By the way, as far as I know, the local dealership from whom I ordered the vehicle is not owned by AutoNation, so doesn't that make you the middleman?

The second misconception that the AutoNation CEO addressed was that of "direct" versus "indirect" retailing.  "Perhaps the greatest myth is that the
referral and broker services offer consumers direct access to vehicle inventory.  Nothing could be more misleading.  It might be more appropriate to call these services 'indirect.'  And now, with some manufacturers warning their dealers not to sell to Internet brokers, even the word 'indirect' might be a stretch,"

And you are?

Mr. Jackson also said, "Research shows that customers spend an average of 19 days researching and buying a new automobile.  On the other hand, they own the vehicle for an average of 39 months.  Good e-dealers, like AutoNation, are positioned to meet the needs of customers during the entire ownership experience.  The referral and broker services seldom see beyond those first 19 days."

Oh hi, it's me .  Sorry to interrupt again.  My online buying experience with AutonationDirect.com suggests that it did not see beyond the first 19 hours.

As I read Jackson's comments, I kept thinking about President Clinton -- as in "I did not...with that woman, Ms. Lewinsky."  (If you want to read more about AutoNation's commitment to customer satisfaction, go check out below its "promise" or check out its entire privacy policy.)

Here's the deal.  "Manufacturers and large e-dealers" would likely replace online referral and broker services as the dominant players if (i.e., "big if") they were to provide superior customer service and value.  They do not at the moment.  It doesn't take a rocket scientist (or for that matter, a national survey by a blue ribbon task force, clickstream tracking or analysis of billions of pieces of data) to see that consumers prefer -- and many even say that they like  -- the online buying process offered by Autonet (my term for the online auto industry players) firms such as Autobytel, Autoweb and CarsDirect , carOrder.com, Driveoff.com, and Greenlight.com.

Here's the problem.  So many companies, not just auto manufacturers and dealers, think first about acquiring money, then about satisfying employees and finally, perhaps, about satisfying consumer needs and wants.  This tends to translate into firm strategies that reflect relatively less about what consumers need and want.  I believe that greater success, greater customer satisfaction, greater employee satisfaction and probably greater profits would come to a firm which thinks first about satisfying well the needs and wants of consumers.

Here's the solution.  Consumers tend to buy products that speak to them.  In order to speak to a consumer, it helps to understand and speak the language of a consumer (e.g., "you can absolutely order it without that option if that is what you want").  Consumers neither enjoy nor respond well to the language of old-school Corporate America (e.g., "if you want to buy this car at this price, you'll need to buy it right now").

My sense is that certain automobile manufacturers are trying to use some hard ball and fear tactics to limit the growth of, or kill, the online car selling services (e.g., see an article written by Justin Hyde of the Associated Press, and another article on the same topic written by Joe White of the Wall Street Journal -- you'll need to be a subscriber to the Wall Street Journal Interactive Edition in order to be able to read the latter article).  It appears that some of the auto manufacturers and dealers are threatened by what the Internet and the Web have enabled.  That's unfortunate as the Internet can help firms not only listen to and better understand the language of consumers, but also bring firms closer to and build stronger relationships with consumers.

I would love to see the day when firms realize that their employees are also consumers and that they should encourage their employees to think and behave naturally, as consumers, when trying to satisfy potential and current customers.  Consumers would be happier, firms would be more successful and life would be so much better.

Lands' End
The replacement items for the Lands' End products that I returned on May 25, arrived today.  The sandals fit Sam perfectly.  The slacks appear to have the right length, however, they aren't cuffed.  The slacks that I returned were cuffed.
 

AutoNation's "promise" as stated in its privacy policy as of June 8, 2000 (I added the bold facing)

Our Promise 

AutoNationDirect is committed to providing you with a safe, no-hassle method of shopping and buying a vehicle. A lot of attention has been directed to the issues of security, full-disclosure, fair and honest pricing, and a thorough and specific privacy policy.

Our website has been designed for maximum efficiency as well as security. We understand that buying a vehicle online is a unique opportunity to save a lot of time and money. And our promise is to let you drive through the easiest, most efficient way of buying a vehicle available today, online or on-the-ground. 

In order to create a state-of-the-art online experience, we've employed the latest technology. Every feature of AutoNationDirect shares one objective: making your experience uniquely satisfactory.