Information flows between the agent and the management server through the customer's Web server.
Altis can also be used to make sure specific applications don't conflict with other programs stored on a user's workstation. John Pisco, president of service provider Second Century Communications, said he will use Altis to manage applications to be distributed to corporate customers in 25 U.S. markets. With this app, we won't have to have people go into a corporation's site and install software in each user's machine, he said. We'll be able to distribute and monitor applications through a Web-based front end, and that will help us reduce costs. Summit Strategies analyst Marty Gruhn said Altis could be a compelling tool for ASPs that want to provide QoS guarantees along with hosted applications.