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21/04/2009

Nowadays there exists one objective shared by all companies: to obtain a solution to optimize the demand of software, but meanwhile adjusting the budget which is, as we know, reducing every time. During this difficult time, the SaaS model application is a better option that can cover all the expectations and needs of the organizations, both at the level of economy and the technology.

The SaaS topic began from the end of the last century and some allocate its origin in the old ASP. These days, this concept has introduced with more detail, explaining as software sales in form of Service (Software as a Service) using the high speed Internet connection. SaaS offers the possibility of “renting” software solutions through Internet.

But of course, there are not all advantages but also some inconvenience. For example, for the distributors or providers, to adapt the application model there will be a level of cost on both the structure and the platform, also there also should be adapted are the requirements of the multi-clients, security, scalability or support. For one company as end customer, the SaaS implementation represents a change of mentality which also means a significant barrier with a political level higher than just a technical problem.

According to World questionnaire issued by the Garner Consultancy in 2008, most of the participant companies have previewed the implementation of the SaaS model solutions in the near future. More detail in 2009, nine from ten confirmed their plan to replace the traditional one for this advanced model. Furthermore, this can also help to reduce the cost of company.

The major advantages offered by SaaS model are:

For companies as end customers

• Minimum of investment. Concerning the cost, the products through SaaS model doesn’t require neither new servers nor installation from the side of neither clients nor access to any special network nor support equipment. The only requirement is to be use to the access through Internet for all companies.
• Zero cost of deployment.
• Zero cost of update and the platform administration.
• Simple access to product “demo” versions.
• Payment according to the use.
• Being different from other Systems, the SaaS Solutions are totally accessible from any place and does not depend on the client’s platform. The standardized use of navigators facilitates utility.
• Focus in the core of the Business. Concentrating on creating the externalized expertise of services. This may be one of the major advantages provided by this model.

For the providers

• Expansion of objective market. The size and location now are not that important.
• The cost of deployment distributes to numerous of clients. It is possible to apply the virtualized solution to optimize the cost and share the resources.
• Las actualizaciones y solución de errores se realizan de forma masiva, rápida (mejora del time to market) y simple. The updating and error resolving will be carrying out in a massive, fast (improvement of time to maket) and simple way.
• Mantenimiento de versiones del producto más simple. Todos los usuarios usan la misma versión. Easier maintenance product versions. All the users use the same version.
• Flexible turnover method. At a commercial level, SaaS demands to offer different services depending on the business type. There is no fixed rules.
• Periodical income and consequently predicted results.
• Accelerate the sales process. The time of discovering one client and start the Business relationship can be reduced to minimum. There is no need of installation in advance.
• Avoid pirating the products.

Although this tendency is applicable in a general level, it is North America who put the investment in the Software as a Service firstly and afterwards follows the European companies. NTRglobal has finished questionnaire activity among 1200 small and medium Spanish companies about the use of SaaS model solution. The conclusion reveals that 49% companies use this type of solution and there is a clear tendency of expand its utility among the SMEs.

Another detail in the same study shows that the CRM is the most demanded solution in SaaS, and the second demanded is back-office applications and then the email program and the integration solutions.

Nowadays, all companies use email. Its protection and security are clear example of the SaaS model application. There is approximately 90% the emails arrived at users mail-box are some type of malware that can provoke the money lost, administration efficiency reduction and data lost due to the virus contained in these emails.

In order to avoid it, there exist solutions that can filter email at different levels and allow to receive only the validate email in order to cover the protection and security needs. This process carries out in the external servers which can avoid to consume the resources and also provide access through Internet and to administrate emails by using the on-line management tool (filter level modification, quarantines management, rule change for emails, etc.).

All explained above let us preview that the future of software is tending to be externalization. Having the SaaS model is the best solution we have until now to implement in our company. But it should not be forget is that this is a radical change in mentality which in many cases shows that to implement totally this solution will take some year to make it.

But we should know that all of us has used this SaaS model in sometime and some where. It is not news, anyway, what are Hotmail, Gmail, Yahoo, Facebook?

By Susana Duran
SPAMINA PRODUCT MANAGER