Software-as-a-service protection strategies : research results

Iron Mountain Incorporated has published the results of an in-depth survey on protection strategies for software-as-a-service (SaaS) providers and subscribers.

The results were released at the Softletter SaaS University conference, held in Washington, D.C., where Iron Mountain's Frank Bruno presented highlights from The Softletter SaaS Escrow Report - a study conducted by Softletter on behalf of Iron Mountain to investigate all aspects of software escrow as it relates to SaaS.

The Softletter SaaS Escrow Report provides current benchmarks, metrics, and usage information on SaaS escrow and fallover / failover services for both the developers and users of SaaS applications. The report covers everything from SaaS application usage, value and risk perceptions associated with SaaS application adoption to the forecasted use of SaaS applications, and the awareness and prevalence of SaaS escrow services. Conducted from March to May 2010, the study surveyed a total of 170 respondents - 112 from companies subscribing to SaaS applications (end-users), and 58 from companies that provide SaaS applications (developers).

The report's key findings include:

* 59 percent of SaaS subscribers are using one to five SaaS applications today, and 65 percent plan on adding one to five SaaS applications over the next 12 to 18 months. Companies are becoming increasingly comfortable with SaaS and cloud computing as indicated by the fact that more than half (56 percent) of the respondents are using SaaS systems for mission critical applications.

* Yet, less than half of companies using SaaS for mission critical applications are using SaaS escrow services to protect their investments and their company's data and operations. This suggests a lack of understanding about the purpose and function of SaaS escrow in general.

* Conversely, 49 percent of providers offer escrow protection, and another 21 percent are considering its adoption. Better than half of all providers over $1M in revenue offer escrow protection.

* Many SaaS subscribers lack awareness, or concern, about the consequences in the event of application failure.

Softletter concludes that both SaaS application providers and subscribers need to take a closer look at their strategies regarding software escrow as the adoption of SaaS applications continues to grow. Companies are rapidly moving to SaaS for their mission critical applications, and need to plan, prepare for, and be ready to manage risk. These companies will suffer significant damage if they don't have back-up plans to protect their investments via escrow and failover services in the event of a disaster.

Obtain the report from here.

•Date: 23rd July 2010 • Region: World •Type: Article •Topic: IT continuity
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