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Advantages of ASP:
The ASP model has evolved because it offers some
significant advantages over traditional approaches. Here are some of
the most important advantages:
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Especially for small businesses and startups,
the biggest advantage is low cost of entry and, in most cases,
an extremely short setup time.
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The pay-as-you-go model is often significantly
less expensive for all but the most frequent users of the
service.
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The ASP model, as with any outsourcing
arrangement, eliminates head count. IT headcount tends to be
very expensive and very specialized (like pilots in the airline
example), so this is frequently advantageous.
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The ASP model also eliminates specialized IT
infrastructure for the application as well as supporting
applications. For example, if the application you want to use
requires an Oracle or MS-SQL database, you would have to support
both the application and the database.
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The ASP model can shift Internet bandwidth to
the ASP, who can often provide it at lower cost.
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One thing that led to the growth of ASPs is the high cost of
specialized software. As the costs grow, it becomes nearly
impossible for a small business to afford to purchase the software,
so the ASP makes using the software possible.
Another important factor leading to the development of ASPs has
been the growing complexity of software and software upgrades.
Distributing huge, complex applications to the end user has become
extremely expensive from a customer service standpoint, and upgrades
make the problem worse. In a large company where there may be
thousands of desktops, distributing software (even something as
simple as a new release of Microsoft Word) can cost millions of
dollars. The ASP model eliminates most of these headaches.
The huge advantage of using an ASP is the fact that you don't
have to do anything to get started. Five years ago, a small business
looking for these services would have needed to:
- Purchase Internet connectivity and a router
- Purchase one or more servers for the Web server software,
e-mail software, etc.
- Hire a person to install and administrate the software
Those are tremendous hurdles. The other thing to note is that
with ASP services will be significantly better than anything a small
business owner can afford to provide.
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