When I was cutting my teeth in technology that buzz word of the day was ASP, or Application Service Providers. These dotcom era companies were getting investment money left and right, all to create a platform from which a hosted application could be delivered to customers on a one to many basis. From this business model, the MSP emerged. If ASPs could make money by delivering hosted applications to customers, then utilizing the same delivery model MSPs could monitor and manage other types of objects like firewalls, servers, routers, and more. Really, the only difference between ASP and MSP is that ASP is very speficic to applications; in fact, many MSPs also deliver ASP type services since they work on business critical applications.
Fast forward to today, and ASP is still a very hot topic amongst the MSP community, although we don’t call it ASP any longer, we call it Sofware as a Service (SaaS) or cloud, if you are really ultra cool. The point is, it’s the same business model and it is as relevant today as it was 12 years ago. But, there are a few significant changes worth mentioning.
First, SaaS or Cloud providers, are going through far more exhaustive scrutiny by partners and customers. Maybe a lesson learned from the dot com years, maybe just a natural maturation of the marketplace, but articles like this one in CIO magazine highlight the need for customers to really do their due diligence on service providers before working with them.
Second, the amount of new cloud providers created in the last 4 years has been staggering. Not since the early years of this millenium have we seen so many new startups focusing on outsourced IT services. Yet, these providers have an advantage the early MSP startups did not have…a roadmap for success.
The early years of MSPs saw many companies wandering around in search of information, support, and business guidance. The scarcity of these resources is in great part what caused the MSPAlliance to be created. Today, I’m happy to say, there are plenty of support groups available to new service providers to provide them the guidance needed to become successful.
Finally, cloud providers have marketing momentum. In the 1990s, ASP was loud, but only in the channel. Meaning, you really only heard of ASP if you were already a part of the IT channel ecosystem. Today, cloud is everywhere. It has seeped out of the IT lexicon and is now permeating nearly every aspect of our technical and non-technical lives. Advertisements for cloud appear on TV, radio, airports, and roadside signs; it is everywhere and it continues to grow in popularity. Providers today no longer have to fight the battle of education and awareness, like their predecessors did. Legitimacy and credibility is the primary focus today.
And so, the old adage proves true. If you live long enough, you get to see history repeating itself. While I don’t consider myself old, I am fortunate to be witnessing, again, the rebirth of the ASP movement. And, it is pretty cool to watch!