Eyeing the pie in ASP cake

BANGALORE: If Sun Microsystems has gone and captured the ISP market then IBM

seems to be saying, ‘we will take the ASP market’. Though reports in the US

press do point out at a raging server war between IBM’s RS/6000 and Sun’s

UltraSparc, the big blue has hit the ASP bandwagon with much zeal.

Doing the ASP pitch for IBM is its old but strong mid-range machine, AS/400.

IBM executive handling worldwide AS/400 marketing, Tim Scheutz says, "For

an ISV looking to move into the ASP market, the AS/400 is a natural choice

because it already runs much of their software. They also know from experience

that the AS/400 will scale for large installations."

IBM has already lined up at least four ASPs who will use AS/400. The first to

have adopted AS/400 would be Pune-based ASPIL which will make available an ERP

package for the SME segment. Another ASP in Gujarat is said to be gearing up to

offer SCM service using the same computing platform.

When Scheutz makes his marketing pitch, it looks more or less the strategy

IBM talked about for its e-business initiative. All looks familiar including the

large SME market opportunity. Even the hosting service has been extended to

ASPs. There is the line of solutions and services which draws from Lotus ASP

pack and Websphere. IBM has also added Linux services in its ASP offering.

The AS/400 currently supports more than 100 different applications through

ASPs. These range from Utility Billing Systems (by Orcom.com) to Convenient

Store Systems (by Storereport.com).

On the prospect side, the ASP market is variously estimated from $5 billion

to $ 80 billion and Scheutz declines to take his figure. However, he believes

that ASP worldwide is just in its infancy and India is just about waking up to

the reality. Scheutz also firmly believes that not all ISPs are necessarily

tomorrow’s ASPs. Instead, there will be strategic alliances between ASPs and

ISPs (or even acquisitions).

Another upside to the story is that ASPs have brightened the prospects of

thin clients and network computers. In the ASP world the Web becoming the

primary media of application delivery and which device throws up the results on

the desktop is just about a matter of choice and convenience. Scheutz does

confirm that network computer market will get a boost. "60 to 70 per cent

of the issues with an ASP is not about applications but with the PC on the

desktop," he adds.