Successful inland navigation relies on waterways, vessels and last but not least ports which nowadays not only offer standard procedures such as transhipment and storage but also logistical values added for customers such as packaging, container stuffing and stripping, sanitary and quality checks, etc. Modern-day ports have thus increasingly turned into logistic platforms that induce companies to settle in their surroundings and spur economic development. As intermodal logistic centres, ports increasingly act as hubs between the different modes of transport.

Forwarding companies are commercial businesses that professionally organise and implement the transport of goods using not only their own vessels but also contracting ships from other companies. In any case, they always operate several vessels. Forwarding companies prepare and direct transport from land-based company premises (in contrast to independent ship-owners who usually do not operate from land).

Austrian waterway transport is not only run by shipping companies but also by the already mentioned small-scale independent ship owners.  Those who sail the Danube are exclusively based in other EU member states, such as Germany, Belgium and the Netherlands. While most of them operate a single motor cargo vessel, some own up to three vessels. In the majority of cases the owners act as captains of their own ships and do not run any land-based offices. In many cases they are organised in co-operatives.

In order to market their services, both shipping companies as well as independent ship owners usually use shipbrokers and chartering agents, who have specialised in inland waterway transport and broker shipping space (transport capacity).

Specialised forwarders or regular forwarders' specialised business units are also active in inland waterway transport.

Mostly representing several shipping companies (one for each area or freight type) (shipping-) agencies are responsible for the complete agency agenda from freight acquisition, preparation of documents, invoicing, collection of charges or cash upon delivery to complaints processing, etc. on another company's behalf but for their own account.