The value of platform as a service (PaaS) is not that you can take your on-premise applications and run them in the cloud – that’s so ASP! In my opinion (and what would a blog be without one), the real value is in enabling functionality that was simply impossible or too hard in an on-premise […]
salesforce
In India, with Force(.com) !
The Tour de Force events across the globe continue to draw great attendance and interest from developers looking to build new SaaS applications. The event is yet to make its way to India but I have been traveling across India (Pune & Bangalore) meeting with partners, educating them about Force.com and Platform as a Service […]
Franchises are for Pizza and Burgers, Not SaaS and Banks
I get a feeling that some mediocre MBA read a case study on franchising and the huge profits it has delivered to companies behind the big pizza and burger brands, and decided to apply it to software. Add the failed ASP model to the inappropriate franchise model borrowed from pizza and burger chains – and […]
Cloud Computing: Its Raining Ideas – Want a Cup of Starbucks?
I know I went overboard on metaphors in the title (cloud, rain, coffee) but then when you have the last few weeks like we have had at Salesforce.com, its hard to not to have your head in the clouds. I know. So here is the scoop, if you have been living under a rock: Starbucks […]
Aberdeen Group Report on Leadership of Oracle SaaS Platform
The Aberdeen Group has issued a research note evaluating the Oracle SaaS Platform. The Insight report talks to the leadership and momentum of the SaaS Platform for ISVs looking to build on-demand applications. I will let Aberdeen Group’s report do the talking, so here is a short excerpt from the conclusion section: Oracle has indeed […]
Oracle SaaS Platform – Gaining Momentum as a Leader
This was an exciting week for Oracle & SaaS – SaaS was a prominent topic of discussion by key executives whether it was Larry’s keynote featuring Social CRM demo by Anthony Lye, or the blogger-analyst discussions with Charles Phillips. Oracle and several partners outlined the leadership position of Oracle SaaS Platform as platform of choice […]
Oracle’s Siebel CRM On Demand to Be Offered Through WebEx Connect Mashup Platform
Oracle today announced that Oracle’s Siebel CRM On Demand will be offered through WebEx Connect Mashup Platform. The press release points out the key capabilities of the solution: WebEx CRM On Demand by Oracle delivered by WebEx offers a comprehensive set of CRM capabilities including: Sales management tools that allow users to engage prospects at […]
SaaS lovers want it both ways – a short rant
A lot of SaaS proponents take great pride in distinguishing the new Software as a Service era from the hosted applications or ASP model – and insist that there is only one right way of doing SaaS. This is in direct contrast to what I am seeing a lot of ISVs do in real life […]
Charles Phillips discusses Oracle SaaS Leadership
Charles Phillips recently emphasized Oracle’s SaaS leadership in an interview to Datamonitor: Always on the look out for growth, Oracle believes the SaaS movement will provide it with two revenue opportunities, one from additional database sales and the other from direct income from services. As far as databases are concerned, president Charles Phillips believes the […]
IBM invests in Kingdee of China (while everyone waits for Google to buy Salesforce)
While a lot of buzz has been generated about some Google-Salesforce announcement including speculations on Google acquiring Salesforce (and dismissals), the important news of the day seems to have been missed – IBM made a significant investment and acquired equity in Kingdee one of the local ERP vendors in China with global ambitions. Under the […]
Predicting the end of Salesforce?
Fellow Irregular, Joshua Greenbaum has posted this excellent note entitled Siebel 2.0: The end of Salesforce, and it follows up on an earlier post by Phil Wainewright How is AppExchange really doing? I recommend you to check both of these out. Here is a quote from Josh: The parallels (with Siebel), unfortunately, regarding Marc’s claims […]
AppExchange vs Windows Marketplace
I discovered Microsoft’s Windows Marketplace by serendipity. And was surprised to see the breadth of the solutions being sold, ready for download. Yes, we all know that SaaS is the way of the future but the fact remains that over 90% of computers sold in the world come with a Microsoft OS and this site […]
Blockbuster v NetFlix: Lessons for software vendors considering SaaS
NetFlix nearly killed Blockbuster by revolutionizing the video rental business with its SaaS-like subscription pricing model and Web2.0-like community referrals. Blockbuster has fought back hard for its life and there are signs now that the tide may be turning in its favor. But Blockbuster lost nearly 75% of its $4 billion market cap over last […]
Peek inside the Kitchen: Why SaaS customers should care about SOA?
If you are a customer that is using on-demand CRM, HR, Reporting, you may think that you probably need not bother about SOA. After all, SaaS is akin to ordering a meal at a restaurant rather than cooking one yourself. But actually you should care about how the meal is prepared, metaphorically speaking, for several […]
Salesforce’s big win, bigger hype
Businessweek and ZDNet’s Larry Dignan report that Merrill Lynch is the latest mystery customer that is signing up for 25,000 subscriptions. The price for subscription is $500 per user per month. Now, if Merrill Lynch actually were to pay this price, they would be down $150 Million a year. That would be more than 25% […]