James Oladujoye, Chief Executive Officer of GWD Media (pictured below) explains, "Software as a Service delivers software as an Internet based service via a web browser, rather than as a product that must be purchased, installed, customised and maintained. The pricing works on a pay-to-use basis, including maintenance and updates, with a monthly or annual subscription fee."

Industry analysts IDC and Merrill Lynch predict the US SaaS market to reach $8 billion this year as companies are quickly realising the business benefits including; reduced cost of ownership, faster deployment times and ease of scalability. According to Saugatuck Technology, the UK will experience the same growth although adoption is currently 12-18 months behind the US.

Lower Cost of Ownership

The low cost of initial deployment is one of the main benefits as the solution is hosted by the service provider, eradicating the customer's need for large up-front IT investment. James Oladujoye clarifies: "A typical software implementation involves purchasing and maintaining servers, housing them securely, and installing and maintaining the software. Once the solution is hosted via SaaS on the other hand, you simply access the solution via a web browser from any location, providing greater flexibility and control, whilst eliminating high entry costs".

According to the Gartner Group, application outsourcing can reduce the total cost of ownership by 50 per cent. James explains: "Through subscribing to web-hosted solutions, you minimise the need for in-house IT staff supporting high-cost, time-consuming IT functions. At GWD Media we manage the maintenance, modifications, scalability, storage and disaster recovery for our customers.

"The more time your employees spend maintaining equipment, downloading and installing patches, removing legacy systems and supporting software upgrades, the less time they are spending on your core business activities".

Reduced risk

‘Software as a Service' lowers the risk of deploying new solutions since subscriptions can be changed or cancelled without sacrificing a large initial investment. Rather than making a long-term commitment to one fixed account structure, you can quickly add or subtract accounts in line with your company's real needs. James explains: "The ‘Software as a Service' model is designed for rapid scalability. Operators can rapidly grow their estates without major investment in their IT infrastructure".

Improved cashflow

A small operational expense is also easier to incorporate into your budget compared to large capital investment. The subscriptions are based on usage providing predictable costs, budgeting and planning.

Saving time

‘Software as a Service' saves time and hassle since you eliminate the typical implementation tasks associated with licensed software. The software is already up and running on the service provider's data centre, subsequently deployment time tends to be much shorter.

Access latest innovations

With traditional licensed software, you typically have to wait for the next release to benefit from the latest innovations unlike the web-hosted solutions. James highlights: "Our product enables users to benefit from innovations on an on-going basis. As soon as a new or improved feature has been tried and tested, they can begin using it".

UK-based Spectrum Interactive currently operates 1900 internet kiosks across the UK and Germany, including 25 UK airports and many hotels. Daniel Gray, Head of Group Marketing and Product Innovation explains: "The key benefit that Genkiosk's ‘Software as a Service' delivery model offered was the ability to manage remotely and integrate the network of new and legacy systems without incurring considerable upfront costs.

"Through eradicating the need for significant IT infrastructure investment and dedicated in-house IT staff, Spectrum Interactive benefits from more control, uplifted revenues and the reduced costs that Genkiosk delivers yet the cost of ownership is relatively low".

http://www.gwdmedia.com/