International Research Forum 2008

In May, 2008, top researchers from around the world people gathered near Potsdam, Germany for the International Research Forum sponsored by SAP Research. For two days, these thinkers from business, academia and government examined a topic that will increasingly become part of our vocabulary: the Internet of Services. The discussion illuminated how the Internet of Services will change enterprise computing. It will help businesses leverage core strengths, find partners in new business networks, collaborate and tap new global markets. Software as a service, cloud computing and other trends are democratizing innovation as never before. The infrastructure barriers to doing business in the Internet of Services are falling away. Yet, as this book shows, this new world also poses challenges different from anything we have seen before.. International Research Forum 2008 captures these insights and begins to answer the questions raised at the gathering. This book will cover: • How the web based service industry is revolutionizing how services are provided over the Internet and allowing customers to choose from a growing menu of offerings. • How the emergence of cloud computing allows companies to outsource basic computing needs and purchase information technology as a service and reduces significant barriers to entry and innovation. • How we can begin to understand the mystery of what makes a "killer app" and identify factors that increase the likelihood of successful innovation. • How semantic service discovery can help customers find the most appropriate services in a vast ocean of potential offerings. These trends take us to the frontiers of business technology. International Research Forum 2008 explains how the technology, practice and pace of business are evolving rapidly. In some cases, this book answers questions about the future. In others, we can only pose questions and offer partial answers because of the difficulty of predicting the future. In either case, the reader will come away better prepared to meet whatever challenges the future brings.