- Traditionally, companies buy software and then install and maintain these applications on their own machines. That model is giving way to one [*] where companies will buy subscriptions and access services over the Internet from software developers that host their own applications.
- Some applications will migrate to the new delivery model faster than others, but all software makers should begin to explore the economics and necessary capabilities for online delivery.
- Revenue models for these developers will change, since software as a service delivers fees over time rather than large up-front license purchases.
- Customer service and R&D capabilities will also need to adjust to the reality of ongoing relationships with customers rather than periodic upgrades.
[*] That new business model (delivering software as a service) is used by Consensus Point, NewsFutures, Inkling Markets, Xpree and most of the other providers of software for enterprise prediction markets.
Wikipedia: SaaS
