Haaretz has more facts about the alibaba.com dotcom success story:

"Alibaba, a dot.com founded to introduce manufacturers and buyers, caught our eye in January 2000 after entrepreneur Jack Ma told The Wall Street Journal how in a single meeting, he'd raised $20 million from Masayoshi for the B2B company he'd founded a few months earlier. They didn't talk about revenues or even a business model, Ma revealed: The discussion was entirely about shared vision. "

Or you could try to generalize and reach a few conclusions. Some of the ideas that arose in the bubble days weren't that stupid. Some things work on Internet, and work well, even though we tend to think of them in the sullied jargon of 2000. Every day more and more companies are making money from advertising on Internet, Internet telephony, online auctions and e-tail. The technology's maturation has been much slower than many expected, but the trend is clear."

I also found some financial reports from GlobalSources - alibaba's main competitor in the region which is more focused on electronics:

"Fourth Quarter 2003 Highlights (Year-Over-Year Analysis)
-- Operating income grew 160 percent to $3.5 million.
-- Net income increased 107 percent to $2.7 million.
-- Positive cash flow from operations increased 40 percent to $7.4
million.
-- Revenue from China grew 40 percent to $11.8 million and accounted for
46 percent of total revenue.
-- Cash & securities at year-end totaled $61.4 million, an increase of
$24.2 million in 2003.
-- Cash & securities and shareholders' equity increased for the eleventh
sequential quarter."