E-commerce is a mixed bag for customers and until a common platform
is created the potential of Web services won't be realised
It's amazing how many VARs have made the change from out-and-out
networking company to partner with a strong presence in e-commerce.
Corporate UK is seeing the huge benefits from investing in Internet
solutions to improve relationships with customers, employees and
suppliers.
In some ways the Internet is mature but in others it is incredibly
primitive. For example, a visit to a Web site is really just a
one-on-one session with someone's mainframe; there is no memory or
connection between it and other sites and so data has to be entered
constantly: there is no sense of a common platform.
A shared experience
It would be great to move from this
world of separate Web sites to a world of connected Web services
that gave great user experience and seamlessly shared data. There
is so much more that we would be able to do with such a platform,
which is why Microsoft is investing so heavily in the .NET
framework.
For this vision to become a customer reality developments are
needed in four key areas.
- A framework for Web services
- Service capability on multiple devices - especially mobile
ones
- Software delivered as a service
- Partners to develop the applications and sell and deliver the
services
A Web services framework gives developers a platform on which to
create customer applications in the form of Web services. In the
same way as Windows provides a common developer framework, .NET
will enable developers to concentrate on customer experience,
rather than worry about the 'plumbing'. The success of this vision
will critically depend upon the range and capability of third-party
Web services.
Software as service
Another requirement is delivery of
software using a hosted, subscription-based model. A Web service
isn't just an item to buy and install, it is some-thing to be used
and licensing models have to support this.
The pure ASP model is slowly building momentum and there have been
a number of recent licensing changes to enable the development of a
successful software-as-a-service model. Then there is the
availability of Web services on any device.
There are some excellent new devices about to hit the streets,
combining PDA and mobile phone capabilities and moving much closer
to the idea of an information appliance. Windows CE, the embedded
operating system for mobile and connected devices, could be a
platform for this.
Make the connection
The final and most important aspect
of developing successful Web services are partnerships, vital for
developing applications, system integration, customer acquisition
and deployment. Basically, partners will fill all of today's roles
as well as provide Web services.
Partners should evolve their businesses over the next few years
accordingly, to step up to this challenge as they have done in the
past. Because Web services enable customers to do new and amazing
things, they will create a whole world of new and lucrative
opportunities for VARs.
Stephen Uden is head of Partner Marketing at
Microsoft
The .NET experience
Microsoft .NET, Microsoft's XML Web
services platform, provides:
- A software platform, a programming model and tools to build and
integrate XML Web services
- Secure interaction with a range of smart devices via the Web:
in contrast to silos of information divided by provider, .NET
experiences are centred around users, integrating their data and
preferences into a single application.
- Smart devices are Web- enabled appliances, such as personal
computers, hand-helds and smart phones with software that makes
them more intelligent in their interactions with users, the
network, information and other devices and services.
- Connected XML Web services: through the use of XML and Simple
Object Access Protocol (SOAP), a range of tailored services can be
fed into a single, integrated experience.