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The buzz around SAP's A1S product is increasing. Reportedly, the product will use the SaaS model for ERP and CRM applications with SMBs being the target. Reportedly, SAP is set to unveil A1S on September 19, a move that is being closely watched around the Web. Will SAP's gamble pay off? Opinions vary.

Summing up a lot of what seems to be the general consensus that SAP's move is a gamble, Internetnews.com's Larry Barrett a few weeks ago reported on an interview with Gartner analyst Dan Sholler in which Sholler commented, "No one has ever proven they can sell this type of business technology this way. SAP is betting the profitability of the company that it will be able to do it."

And if eWeek's Renee Boucher Ferguson is stating correct figures, betting the profitability may not be a stretch, as she reports that SAP has spent somewhere between $414 and $552 million over eight quarters on developing A1S, and that SAP may be planning A1S as the future replacement suite for its former flagship product R/3.

Time will tell what happens with the release, but some of the target customers may not be terribly interested, according to a Forrester Research report about whichSearchSAP.com's Jon Franke wrote saying that 60% of SMBs in its survey were "not at all interested" in SaaS for ERP and preferred on-premise products.

We shall see if they are more or less interested after September 19.

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Posted by: Cornel Schoeman at August 30, 2007 11:36 AM | Permalink