The Pay-as-you-Go SOA Challenge

One of the things I’ve been thinking about this holiday weekend is the way that people are paying for SOA technology. I mean, if you’ve selected a vendor, you’re paying for the technology before you know it’s both the right fit and works as advertised. There is no shared risk.

The “pay before play” model is the domain of the on-premise enterprise software vendors, including most SOA vendors. However, there has been a movement in the last few years to software-as-a-service (SaaS), open source, and now platform-as-a-service (PaaS). What’s nice about these emerging models is that typically you pay for these products as you use them, as you need them to scale, and in accordance with the value to the business. Thus, like any subscription service, if things don’t work out you can cancel at any time.

What I’m proposing is that the existing SOA vendors provide the same model. In essence, they accept payment only after the product is in production and do so on a subscription-type basis, where the customer can cancel at any time. What’s nice about this model is that it lowers the risk for the technology consumer and puts the focus on providing valuable technology now and for years to come. If you miss the mark and don’t provide the value, the revenue stops. However, if you’re a fit and the technology works as advertised, then you have reoccurring revenue for years to come.

Some technology vendors already provide this model for their on-premise solutions, but most don’t. They require a large up-front payment to license the software, and than back-end maintenance agreements as well. The subscription model for most will be an “unnatural act”; however, I think it’s the right way to sell software, on-premise or on-demand. Thus, those SOA vendors who stand behind the value of their technology and are willing to share the risk with their customers, this is my challenge to you. It will be interesting to see who accepts … very interesting.