Top of the Page SLAs Remain Valid Business and IT executives don't need to feel apprehensive when rented apps need adjusting to fit company specifications. Service-level agreements aren't put in jeopardy when leased applications are customized. Although changes are more likely to produce glitches than packaged apps, ASPs are willing to hold firm to their contractual service agreements even when software modifications occur. For a small number of vendors, alterations change the client relationship entirely and jeopardize service-level agreements. In The Red Most application service providers are still trying to find their niche in the application outsourcing market.
Profitable ASPs are still few and far between.
Among the providers surveyed by Information Resource Group, two-thirds have yet to turn a profit. However, not every ASP is suffering. Seventeen percent of the 222 vendors participating in the semiannual study report that their operations were profitable within six months. Judging by the numbers, dependence varies greatly. Fifteen percent of providers report that, on average, clients signed with their companies lease four or five apps at a time.