IBM launches 'e-business on demand' in APAC

PHUKET: IBM chairman, Lou Gerstner said 'Today e-business is just business,

real business" as IBM took a step further with the launch of its e-business

on demand for the Asia Pacific region. Launching the e-business on demand for

the Asia Pacific market, Lee Han Kiat, vice president, e-business hosting, IBM

Global Services, Asia Pacific said, "The new utility model will change the

way we do business and think business."

According to, Kiat, in the history of mankind, four key technologies have

become utilities and changed the face of human civilization. These technologies

are water, natural gas, telephone and electricity. And the next technology with

potentials to join the list is 'e-business applications on tap'. Drawing

similarities between the failed ASP model and the announced e-business on

demand, Kiat mentioned that the ASP model failed because of lack of integration

of ASP's application to the other applications within the organization and ASPs

insistence of trying to own the infrastructure.

However with the e-business on demand utility model, IBM would partner with

the ASP and allow them to focus on the application side and take care of the

backend infrastructure and middleware. Currently IBM has about 6-7 live case for

this model and the IBM's success in these companies has prompted IBM to go with

the model on a full scale. Commenting on the lag time between US and the APAC

markets, Kiat mentioned that while the lag in terms of IT adoption remains about

a year plus, but the utility model not have a time lag.

Given the increased economic pressures being faced by Asian companies, IBM is

convinced about companies in the region going in for this model in big numbers.

In terms of the verticals that will move in quickly towards this model, Kiat is

optimistic about the banking, healthcare and the education (e-learning)

verticals to quickly ramp up to the utility model. In India, IBM is talking to

two key customers in the retail segment and the banking segment. Talking about

IBM's research of over 1000 executives, Kiat mentioned that in terms of business

capabilities while 65 of the respondents wanted to have CRM functions about

94per cent agreed that the utility model makes more sense than owning the same.

Similar was the case for e-commerce and collaboration functionality within

the organization. While 60 per cent and 39 per cent wanted to have the business

capabilities in the organization a whopping 90 per cent for each of the

functions wanted to deploy the same in the utility model. The key concern for

this model to take off in a big way remains 'lack of bandwidth.' Comments Kiat,

"It is cheaper to connect to US than to inter AP markets." If this

issue is sorted out, then the AP market could see much quicker rollout of the

utility model