Is this the right time?

The key boom of the late 90’s followed by the bubble bursting in the early 2000’s have many factors that played a part but the main factor behind both was the idea of making software work over the internet and no longer on your desktop or laptop. As a CEO of a tech company if can see the benefits for this as a way to cut cost when it comes to implementing software and purchasing hardware. I can also see the benefit of why a Software Company would want to have their software online; cheaper production cost and new subscription based revenue model making budget and forecasting much easier.

So the consumer whether it business or end user both benefit and the ISV’s benefit also, a true win win situation and a major factor in the tech boom. The problem was timing the world just wasn’t ready for it; Internet infrastructure and speeds were still being built, securing and storing people personal details was very expensive, and consumer confidence was low as the internet still was relatively new for most people.

It’s almost 2009, close to 8 years have passed since the tech boom burst. The past 8 years we have seen huge growth in the internet with consumers buying more and more each day on the internet, the speed is now making it possible to work remotely changing the way we do business today. Web meetings are now the norm, basically redefining the way sales people do their jobs. Not only has it changed the way sales people do their jobs but the way companies sell their product more companies are now selling direct over the internet and cutting out the resellers.

Last week Microsoft launched Windows Azura, a new platform specifically for CLOUD Computing, basically allowing developers to build SaaS applications that span from PC to the web to mobile phones and everything in between. This with the success of Apple’s IPhone is making the dream of the 90’s become a reality today and more so in the near future.

The main concern that I see in the near future is…are the consumers ready to change the way they do business? Apple, Microsoft, Google, and all the major software companies believe they are as they are all investing heavily in creating application that works over the web, sure today we already have some web apps that are doing really well, especially a database driven application like Salesforce, they are very successful doing this. But most web apps today still are limited in the functionality hence the reason why software companies that have these apps still produce a desktop version. Every day that passes they all get closer to finding ways to make their web apps fully functional. Once they do get to this point will the consumers have a choice but to accept that their application is no longer on their system but on the web somewhere?

I think at first people will be a little cautious as they were about making purchases over the internet but over time they will accept it especially as it will make their world much easier. There willno longer be the need to bring your laptop everywhere, you can access your software and data from any computer, your phone or even your TV. This is what I believe will make users flock to applications online, radically changing the way we live our lives, just as the introduction of the PC did in the 70’s and 80’s as did the introduction of the internet did in the 90’s and the turn of the century.