service delivery platform

Service Delivery PlatformsBridging the Gap Between ISVs

and Service Providers

SaaS Realities• “Tsunami-like” software industry shift• Most software companies will need to have a SaaS

offering in order to survive and thrive over the coming years

• According to Gartner, “the scale of change involved in moving to a SaaS approach is proving hard for many vendors to manage.”

• Most applications were not designed for SaaS delivery• Service (Hosting) Provider space is getting crowded,

between Leaders, and those claiming to have SaaS experience

ISV Realities• Independent Software Vendors (ISVs) have not

traditionally relied on Service Providers for market success

• Uncharted territory• ISVs must solve 3 key challenges in order to enter and

excel in the SaaS space

Business Architecture

Delivery Architecture

Application Architecture

SaaS challenges



DeliveryArchitecture

Service Provider Realities• Must grow and expand outside traditional

business model• Currently attracting ISVs with commoditized

service offerings• Reputation, price

• Doesn’t solve ISV’s application architecture problem

• Lengthy sales cycle

• Delivery promise is somewhat dependent upon ISV’s software

• Emphasis is on addressing delivery architecture

SaaS challenges




SaaS challenges




Business “Architecture” Challenges

Business “Architecture” ChallengesISV• Understanding the cost of entry• Calculating costs per subscriber• Finding appropriate pricing models• Creating appropriate marketing

strategies

• Revising Sales compensation

• Introducing SaaS without cannibalizing the need for cash benefits of existing model

• Determining impact on existing Channels, and developing new ones

Service Provider• Getting away from “price wars” to

win business

• Shortening the time between a lead and a relevant volume of ISV subscribers

• Generating “Demand Pull”

• Reducing costs associated with manual labour to support numerous ISVs and their subscribers

SaaS challenges




Delivery “Architecture” Challenges

Delivery “Architecture” ChallengesISV• Fully reliant on Service

Providers

• Offloads “pains” of hosting technologies, typologies, uptimes, etc.

• Demands 100% SLAs

• Regards hosting as a commodity service

Service Provider• Core competency

• May not have solved SaaS scalability issues

• Difficult to show uniqueness or strategic value

SaaS challenges



Application “Architecture” Challenges


Application “Architecture” ChallengesISV• Existing architecture

makes SaaS price-prohibitive

• May not have the engineering skill to make required architecture changes

• Critical time passes trying to solve this issue – 3 months, 6 months, 12 months?

Service Provider• Can only pursue ISVs

that have the correct application architecture

• Limited percentage of ISVs are strong candidates for SaaS

• Need to widen their net of prospects

Bridging the Gap

Service Delivery PlatformsWhat is an SDP?• The term Service Delivery Platform (SDP) was

originally used in the telecommunications industry• Today, an SDP represents a vehicle to enable rapid

development and deployment of online services, including software and multimedia content

• An SDP typically provides a service creation environment, and a service execution environment; as well as metering, monitoring, and reporting capabilities

Service Delivery PlatformsProvides positive business impact by:• Taking advantage of existing software

investments• Getting a new or existing application SaaS-

enabled within 30 days• Enabling ISVs to focus on the features and

functionality of their products• Solving the architectural barriers to SaaS

General Purpose

Horizontal Oriented

Platforms Types

Product Oriented

Service Delivery PlatformsAn SDP should provide:

• Configurability

• Scalability/High Availability

• Multi-Tenancy

Configurability

� tenant metadata configuration

� convenient management interface

� customizable usage reporting

� release and update management

tenant-load balancing, so servers are added as required when users increase

automated provis ioning of application instances

S calability/High Availability

graceful, real-time failover if infrastructure becomes unavailable

No need to re-architect the application to produce multi-tenancy means:

Virtual Multi-Tenancy

� Increased speed to market

� Reduced costs

Users get their own application ins tances means:

Virtual Multi-Tenancy

Enhanced reliability —

The activity or failure of one tenant does not affect other tenants

SDP: Bridging the Application Architecture Gap

Application ArchitectureISV

• SaaS offering within 30 days

• Reduce or eliminate expensive development costs

• Leverage existing technologies

Service Provider

• Can truly be a “turn-key” ISV partner, solving both the delivery and application architecture challenges

• Cast a wider net to attract ISVs

SDP: Bridging the Business Gap

Business “Architecture”ISV

• Get to market in less than 30 days

• Leverage existing technologies

• Allow Channel Partners to resell SaaS offering

Service Provider

• Expand existing service offering to include benefits of an SDP

• Substantial competitive advantage

• Shorten sales cycle and time to market

SDP: Bridging the Delivery Gap

Delivery ArchitectureISV

• Subscriber Account Management

• Software Release Management

Service Provider

• Efficiency and Profit gains through: Automation of customer provisioning and product releases

• SLA Monitoring and Enforcement

Which Service Delivery Platform(s) is right for you?

service delivery platform

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