Solution Providers Aboard SAAS Bandwagon
By Jessica Davis
Most Microsoft partners view SAAS as an opportunity, not a threat.
Solution providers view software as a service as a big opportunity that has the potential to change the way business is done.
That is according to a forthcoming study from market research firm IDC, “Channel View: SAAS Capabilities and Opportunities.”
The study surveyed just over 300 businesses made up of members of the
IAMCP (International Association of Microsoft Certified Partners,) an
independent organization, and also partners at an unnamed major IT
distributor.
IDC reported that 76 percent of solution providers who responded
believe that SAAS will dramatically impact the partnering landscape,
and more than 70 percent of solution providers view it as an
opportunity.
“I had expected partners to be positive, but the extent of the optimism
was very encouraging to me,” said Stephen Graham, group vice president
of Software Business Strategies at IDC.
Many solution provider firms are already engaged in
SAAS-related activities, according to IDC. And solution providers
believe that the most profitable opportunities related to SAAS will
remain deployments and implementation services. But solution providers
are also looking forward to the recurring revenue opportunity that
comes with the SAAS business model, according to IDC.
The firm also expects more vendors to take up the SAAS flag next year.
In 2008 several major vendors and their respective solution
provider ecosystems will be entering the SAAS space or ratcheting up
their participation in it, Graham said. Vendors to watch include SAP,
Microsoft, Cisco Systems and IBM, he said.
One of the vendors looking to help solution providers leverage
the new opportunities is Microsoft. The company’s Solution Finder tool
helps customers and solution providers find other solution providers,
and Microsoft expects its partners to use the tool to help with SAAS
projects.
“Partners will increasingly be working together to be able to
offer these kinds of solutions,” said Marie Huwe, a general manager
with the Microsoft Partner organization in charge of worldwide partner
and marketing strategy. “By partnering with each other there’s more
opportunity for the channel to cross geographies.”
IDC conducts a similar survey every six months looking at different channel issues. The
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