COMMENTARY--By now, virtually every company is fully aware and engaged in various
stages of integrating the Internet into their business model to help serve
customers better. A key part of every integration strategy is the use of
Web services. The phenomenal growth of Web services is made possible by
open standards that are built into the products that comprise the Web
services infrastructure.
With a standards based infrastructure, companies can link applications and conduct B2B or B2C commerce regardless of the computing platforms and programming languages involved. In a way, Web services are the natural evolution of the Internet--again all based on open standards. At this point, Web services may seem pretty straightforward, but a critical issue companies face is choosing the best enterprise/strategic development platform for creating and deploying these new interoperable applications.
Several options are available, but the key thing to remember is that any Web services development platform--by definition--must follow open standards to be interoperable, be innovative with rich and robust functionality and work properly in responding to and addressing the complex needs of a typical enterprise organization.
The clear leader in this race to deliver Web services functionality is IBM and the entire Java / J2EE vendor community. IBM, to its credit, recognized nearly five years ago the need to support standards that provide customers the flexibility of choice and as a result, devoted serious resources to creating its solution. IBM's Web services platform today is based on WebSphere, Lotus, Tivoli and DB2. Other Java / J2EE IT vendors (BEA, Oracle and Sun) also have formidable Web Services platforms (and market share) that make the argument for .NET "conquering the world" suspect at best.
Let's consider just one competitive scenario--IBM's WebSphere and Microsoft's .NET. At first glance many will likely recall the days of the Windows versus OS/2 battle. Such a comparison would be a mistake, because this time it is IBM with the commanding lead and a commanding market presence over .NET. WebSphere is estimated to have more than 35 percent market share among enterprise customers today. When you include the entire Java community the total share of the enterprise market relying on Java as a primarily platform for complex application delivery over the web the market share reaches an estimated 80 percent. The Java camp is enjoying this success in large measure because of their track record in delivering tools and solutions that are truly based on vendor neutral standards. Contrast that with the challenge Microsoft executives had this summer in having to explain repeatedly what .NET is and what it does so that customers, industry analysts and the press can understand the value proposition.
In Microsoft's defense, it should be noted that they are working closely with IBM and others in the Java community to develop industry standards for Web services, but their approach is very different when it comes to implementation. IBM and the Java community is committed to a Web infrastructure based on open standards, especially Java and Linux so disparate systems work well together. Microsoft presents .Net as an open platform that supports Web standards, but in truth it is still a highly proprietary technology that runs solely on the Windows platform. Yes, Microsoft does support Web standards interoperability, such as XML and SOAP, but again, only within the proprietary Windows framework that is not easily portable.
Locking-in Web services to the Windows platform may be a perfectly acceptable solution for a small or mid-tier business. However, for larger organizations, this approach is not only impractical but also caries with it risks and hidden costs when addressing the integration and collaboration challenges of significant internal applications as well as a large, dispersed organization. It's important to remind ourselves of one very important fact, that almost every large company has a rich, complex heterogeneous computing environment.
Another critical factor to consider is that a commitment to only one operating environment such as Windows means companies lose the ability to choose and negotiate among Web service application vendors for the best function and price. Will companies really want to marry their Web services application development--including the possibility of a substantial portion of their future Internet-based revenue and vital customer relation activities--so closely to Microsoft?
There are many who have scoffed at the notion that customers who commit to Java/J2EE enjoy the benefit of deciding later to migrate to another Java platform with little cost or difficulty. These naysayers claim that while theoretically possible, as a practical matter companies are unlikely to exploit this advantage. For those who fall in this camp of naysayers, let me only say this, I have personally worked with three Fortune 1000 clients that have done exactly this in the last twelve months and several more who are contemplating similar migrations. All have told me repeatedly how thankful they are to have adopted a standard that affords them this kind of flexibility. This is not a theoretical benefit, but a very real and strategic benefit when you consider just how fragile and unpredictable the technology trends and industry have become.
This is not to suggest in any way that Microsoft doesn’t have a solid vision, quality products or that Microsoft won't enjoy success in the Web services world with their .NET offerings. In fact, Microsoft's commitment to standards and interoperability in the Web services world is both welcome and critical to large-scale adoption in the marketplace. The fact that Microsoft has embraced standards and interoperability with the Java world is evidence that Microsoft recognizes customers will no longer tolerate proprietary solutions. It's also true that the .NET offerings will likely capture a large segment of the existing pool of Microsoft developers and customers. Unfortunately for larger customers however, this wont produce increased platform choice or vendor flexibility.
If future Web usage, cost savings and revenue generation is only half of what is projected, it is likely that most companies will continue their investment and support of Java as their strategic platform. Will .NET gain acceptance and find an important role to play in a Java/Standards-based world? Absolutely, but only if Microsoft delivers on their promise to truly support standards. Which raises an interesting question--does history give anyone reason to believe that Microsoft is truly interested in customer choice and flexibility based on vendor neutral standards?
Brad Murphy is Senior Vice President of Strategy and Strategic Business Development for Valtech Technologies, an international software consulting and training firm, with U.S. Headquarters in Dallas and international headquarters in Paris. Mr. Murphy has more than 20 years experience in advising insurance clients on the design, construction and integration of standards based technology solutions. Mr. Murphy is also the former founder and CEO of digitalESP.
