Some reports estimate that more than 1,000 companies list themselves as ASPs. Confusion about ASP services has made potential customers reluctant to outsource services. Generally speaking, an ASP should provide not just the applications, but all the IT infrastructure and support services necessary to deliver them via the Internet or a private network. Unfortunately, the service is not so straightforward. The market is strewn with inconsistencies.
Some ASPs have the internal resources to deliver applications to customers.
In most cases, the application and Web hosting services are intertwined. ASPs with deep pockets and strong partnerships are positioning themselves as general hosting service providers, allowing customers to outsource as much or as little as they choose. ASP benefits Despite the varied business models and inconsistent offerings, the trend toward outsourcing application hosting services is evident and continues to rise, driven mainly by the cost of implementing a secure, scalable environment. Furthermore, dot-coms experiencing fast growth are having a hard time keeping up with the increasing number of transactions. The principal benefit to ASPs that bundle their services with hosting services is that they can provide relief to a company experiencing growing pains by enabling the company to affordably expand its operations in a scalable infrastructure.