http://www.saasblogs.com/general-technology/what-to-look-for-in-an-on-demand-platform-aka-saas-platform/ Understanding the "as a Service" Revolution Thu, 09 Feb 2012 19:11:01 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.2.1 http://www.saasblogs.com/general-technology/what-to-look-for-in-an-on-demand-platform-aka-saas-platform/#comment-3375 SaaS Blogs - » Explaining SaaS Trust and SaaS Platforms Metaphorically Mon, 23 Apr 2007 22:16:16 +0000 http://www.saasblogs.com/2006/11/27/what-to-look-for-in-an-on-demand-platform-aka-saas-platform/#comment-3375 [...] During the keynote panel, a question was asked by an audience member that I ended up fielding (again, paraphrased) – “Do SaaS platforms parallel the telco industry where value is controlled across the entire stack by the telco, or is it closer to the electrical grid where value is at the appliance level, which taps into the distributed power.” The question posed a perfect parallel because of the nature of electricity distribution. My response to it was that the electrical grid provides the best parallel for SaaS platforms – SaaS platforms are responsible for providing the foundational aspects of service delivery and management (i.e. “power grid”) while each application defines the actual value to the end user (where an application is much like an appliance). For example, if I toast bread, my derived value, although powered by electricity, is provided by the toaster oven. When a user uses a SaaS application built on a platform like SaaSGrid, the end user value is provided by the application. So where does the SaaS platform fit in? Well, your toaster comes with a power cord – an interface that encapsulates certain expectation. That power cord and any corresponding regulatory mechanics tap into the electrical delivery grid to make toasting bread possible. With respect to telco’s, value (in present form) is generally introduced by the telco and no-one else. Cell networks tend to be closed, and new functionality is introduced by the telco itself. That parallel is not valid – at least not with SaaSGrid; a platform’s goals should not be to monolithically provide value to the end user, but rather to provide all necessary delivery mechanics to the SaaS provider. SaaS providers – the appliance manufacturer’s – know what their respective customer’s want, and can deliver appropriately. The most important thing to realize in all of this is that most toaster’s do not come with their own power sources;-) Tags:  SaaS SaaS platform SaaS Trust SaaSCon SaaSGrid Treb Ryan These icons link to social bookmarking sites where readers can share and discover new web pages. [...]

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