Software As A Service is an application or layer of the cloud. These applications run on cloud and are accessible to users on demand. SaaS is the foundational idea behind centralized computing: entire businesses and thousands of employees will run their computer tools as online rented products. All of the processing work and file saving will be done on the Internet, with users accessing their tools and files using a web browser.
Software as a Service (SaaS) makes use of a cloud computing infrastructure to deliver the a single application to many users, regardless of their location. Many people do confuse between SaaS and Cloud Computing. Cloud computing is a new model for IT services that operates on the Internet. Software-as-a-Service is a form of cloud computing that relieves the user of the burden of hardware and software installation and management. Cloud computing was formed to cater to the demands of the businesses which is practically the need of the enterprise.
Characteristics of SaaS include:
Network or Online Access
Centralized Management
One to many model application
Centralized feature updates
Faster deployment
The primary benefit being its reduced cost of operation, SaaS model brings an efficient way of compuing over the internet. There are many other benefits along with this:
-Pay per use
-Anytime and anywhere accessibility
-Instant scalability
-Security
-Reliability
The entire buzz about cloud computing is focussing in the improvement of customer experience. Businesses want to improve their business process to increase the number of customers through better service.
Though Cloud Computing is relatively a new concept for some businesses and consumers. But already its advantages are being well heard and known. Many industry and business leaders are looking forward to deploying of cloud computing solutions. The popularity of SaaS is steadily increasing because it simplifies deployment and reduces customer acquisition costs.