Ecosystems help SaaS acceptance in Asia

SaaS vendors, ISVs, telcos, and hosting providers in Asia are coming together to create powerful SaaS ecosystems that will accelerate the technology's adoption in the region, according to a recent research report by Springboard Research. The report was called SaaS Enablement -- The Emerging Ecosystem.

The current SaaS ecosystem landscape in Asia is made up of pure-play SaaS application providers, such as Salesforce.com, NetSuite, and WebEx; new-age SaaS-enabling technology and infrastructure providers like OpSource and Jamcracker; established system integrators and technology providers like IBM and Microsoft; application hosting service providers like WebCentral and KAZ; and telecommunications service providers such as Tata Communications and Telstra, all of which are bolstering SaaS growth in Asia/Pacific, Springboard found.

"As enterprises become used to buying software-as-a-service, and as more and more ISVs step in to fill demand for additional applications, the importance of a robust SaaS ecosystem will grow," said Balaka Baruah Aggarwal, senior manager of emerging software for Springboard Research.

"Our analysis of these ecosystems indicates that although they are still in an early stage of evolution in the region, going forward they will play a key role in the growth and expansion of Asia/Pacific's SaaS market," Aggarwal added.

Springboard also found that many SaaS vendors are building ecosystems to broaden their offerings and to create a portfolio of integrated business applications through partnerships with other ISVs. Salesforce.com's AppExchange, IBM's SaaS Showcase, WebCentral's Application Marketplace, and Jamcracker's Service Delivery Network are all positioned as marketplaces for on-demand software applications. In addition, these ecosystems aim to attract ISVs with a range of incentives that include access to technology, infrastructure, and customers.

"While every group of SaaS enablers has taken a different approach to building their ecosystem, the creation of a common marketplace for on-demand software applications appears to be the goal", said Aggarwal.

"These ecosystems also present promising opportunities for ISVs, especially small ones, looking to reach new customers and geographies through the existing SaaS enabler customer base, and to benefit from SaaS players' technical expertise and marketing efforts".

Len Rust is publisher of The Rust Report