Patent ID: 7222077

Claim:
A method for executing an enterprise application via a network enabled system of a service provider to enable enterprise solution cost-sharing, the method comprising: establishing a hosted enterprise solution to be used by users in a collaboration community, in which the users communicate online, the users comprising a plurality of partners and a client; establishing an initial host subscription fee to be incurred by the client; providing a cost-sharing formula that is based on characteristics pertaining to a number of the users of the hosted enterprise solution, a modifiable number of subscribing partners, and a modifiable number of non-subscribing partners, wherein the subscribing partners represent a group of partners within the plurality of partners that pay a partner subscription fee while the non-subscribing partners represent the rest of the plurality of partners that do not pay the partner subscription fee; determining, using the cost-sharing formula, a cost-sharing value associated with the partner subscription fee to be paid by one or more of the subscribing partners; updating the initial host subscription fee to be incurred by the client using the determined cost-sharing value; and providing the hosted enterprise solution for use by the client, the subscribing partners and the non-subscribing partners.