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Who Are the Players? What does it take to be a top-tier player in the web-services game? I think you need three things: (1) software products, (2) a sales/distribution channel, and (3) strong professional services.
IBM and Microsoft are obvious. As a company that derives half its revenues from products and the other half from services, IBM has all three bases covered. Microsoft derives only 5% of its revenues from professional services, but they make up for that with their huge army of trained developers and resellers. Who else?
Remember those red-box folks from Utah? Novell isn't a name we hear as much about as we used to, and certainly not as one of the top-tier players in the web-services game, but that could change. Desperate to recover its lost lustre, Novell has picked web services as its new focus. On June 10, the company announced the acquisition of Silverstream for $212 million to enhance Novell's product line. Last July, the company acquired Cambridge Technology Partners, which gave it the professional services piece. (It also brought on CTP's Jack Messman to replace Eric Schmidt as President and CEO.) And what about the channel? Novell still has its own army of loyal--but desperate for a new vision--VARs. Yes, Novell may be a longshot, but one worth watching. [eWeek Interview with Jack Messman]
Posted Friday, June 21, 2002 5:15:00 AM 
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