Wednesday, August 16, 2006
SAP's Big Bankroll
SAP's Big Bankroll: "SAP is building an ecosystem, or network, around NetWeaver that is composed of companies selling related applications and developers who write to it, as well as reseller partners and consultants.
The issue of standards has become critical as the industry has moved to embrace trends, such as service-oriented architecture (SOA), which enables the creation of applications that are built by combining loosely coupled and interoperable services.
SAP's approach to SOA is complex, but simply stated, the company is breaking up its large applications into modules that can be delivered as a service, explains Genovese. Each component, or mini-app is 'wrapped' in NetWeaver and delivered to the customer. 'It's sort of a stealth strategy for world domination,' she jokes.
But getting NetWeaver in the door is a serious business. After a slow start, SAP has done well selling NetWeaver into its huge installed base, but growth has slowed, says Bert Hochfeld, who runs a research firm under his own name.
'SAP needs hot applications. At the end of the day, it doesn't have them,' he says.
Moreover, SAPmissed its targets in the second quarter, a stumble that led some investors to fearing that the company -- and IT spending in general -- may be slowing. "
The issue of standards has become critical as the industry has moved to embrace trends, such as service-oriented architecture (SOA), which enables the creation of applications that are built by combining loosely coupled and interoperable services.
SAP's approach to SOA is complex, but simply stated, the company is breaking up its large applications into modules that can be delivered as a service, explains Genovese. Each component, or mini-app is 'wrapped' in NetWeaver and delivered to the customer. 'It's sort of a stealth strategy for world domination,' she jokes.
But getting NetWeaver in the door is a serious business. After a slow start, SAP has done well selling NetWeaver into its huge installed base, but growth has slowed, says Bert Hochfeld, who runs a research firm under his own name.
'SAP needs hot applications. At the end of the day, it doesn't have them,' he says.
Moreover, SAPmissed its targets in the second quarter, a stumble that led some investors to fearing that the company -- and IT spending in general -- may be slowing. "
