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SaaS-y Software

Mark me as confused on this one. Microsoft has just posted a sample application to show how Software as a Service (SaaS) works. The Microsoft Web site explains that "Software as a Service is a new delivery model where companies pay not for owning the software itself but for using it."

I agree with this whole sentence, except for the word "new." Service providers have been offering Microsoft software as a service for years, lots of years. And so, to some extent, has Microsoft itself! I'm glad Microsoft is serious about this model, and is throwing new technology and infrastructure in this direction, but the concept is far from "new."

Posted by Doug Barney on February 20, 2007


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