IBM gets behind Web 2.0, SaaS, SOAs

IBM has tried to further cement its position at the vanguard of Software as a Service, Web 2.0 and service oriented architecture (SOA) technologies, at a Made in IBM Labs event held at the firm’s Hursley labs.

The firm is likely to expand its hosting services in the future after receiving positive customer feedback, although it will face stiff competition, explained head of IBM's Software Group, Steve Mills.

"The big institutions like the banks plan to become software as a service providers and the internet platform providers can also adapt to [provide SaaS], " he added.

"However they may not be very helpful at the process outsourcing which a typical business is thinking [of] – they’re more providing a facility for you."

Mills also proclaimed that low skills levels among users of service oriented architectures (SOAs) was "the number one inhibitor to customer adoption", and he pledged to find new ways of making the associated technology more user friendly.

IBM technicians demonstrated several Web 2.0 projects currently being trialled, including one involving the design of an e-commerce site for a large DIY chain, which allows customers to interact with staff members, trade professionals and friends through the web site portal.

Blogs, wikis, tags, instant messaging functionality, and an interface with Second Life – which allows customers to visualise their potential purchases alongside their property – all boost the user experience and help foster loyalty to the vendor, according to Andy Dean of IBM’s Emerging Technology Services.

"If customers feel the pull of community [on your site] it has more stickiness," he added. "My focus is on helping entereprises to get their heads round [Web 2.0] and social networking."

The technology has also been extended out to the mobile sphere, including the capability for the store to recognise a loyal customer’s mobile phone when they enter, and send promotional messages or loyalty vouchers to the handset via Bluetooth.

Firms in all sectors could benefit from the social, collaborative and interactive nature of Web 2.0 on their sites, and may find internal use of wikis, profiles and other tools a good testing ground for use in a B2C environment, Dean explained.

A second Web 2.0 project involved QEDWiki – a wiki framework providing web users and developers with an single environment to host and develop Web 2.0 applications, and allowing business users to build ad hoc apps without needing to rely on IT experts.

Due to its wiki-like framework, multiple users can collaborate on building mash-ups, and the technology has already gained interest among a broad cross-section of industries from finance to biotechnology, explained IBM’s Flavio Bergamaschi.

In related news, web security specialist Websense has launched new technology designed to attract attacks on Web 2.0 type applications before they reach customers.

HoneyJax, which is part of the firm's ThreatSeeker technology works in a similar way to a honeypot, by apeing user behaviour to uncover threats before they have a chance to become widespread.