Service-Oriented Integration

Key Findings:

  • Service-Oriented Integration (SOI) simplifies system integration by providing a single, simple architectural framework based on Web Services in which to build, deploy, and manage application functionality.
  • The SOI market is expected to grow from $435 million in 2001 to about $6.2 billion in 2006.
  • The top three EAI vendors have over 43% of the overall EAI market. With the entrance of Microsoft and other vendors in 2002, this landscape is expected to change.
  • Web Services isn’t an integration technology, but a distributed computing technology that lends itself well to being used in integration scenarios.
  • In a Web Services context, there really is no difference between EAI, B2Bi, and Data Integration.
  • SOI solutions allow users to get a greater level of interaction and granularity with components deep within the application.
  • SOI faces challenges in immature specifications, insufficient reliability, security, and transaction control.
  • Microsoft and IBM have made strong entries into this space that will be a challenge for other providers of SOI solutions.
  • The potential ROI realized by adopting Service-Oriented Architectures (SOA) far outweighs the slight benefits an organization gets from using Web Services as simply a “better API” for accessing application functionality.
  • Integrating systems between two businesses is not only a technological problem; it requires pre-existing business relationships between the companies.

Table of Contents:

  • I. Report Scope
  • II. Integration: The Challenges to be Solved
    • 2.1 The N-Squared Integration Challenge
    • 2.2 Classes of Integration Problem
    • 2.3 Traditional EAI and B2Bi Solutions
    • 2.4 Why Current EAI and B2Bi Solutions are Not Sufficient
    • 2.5 The Integration “Zipper”
  • III. Service-Oriented Integration Approaches
    • 3.1 Using Web Services for Integration: Service-Oriented Integration (SOI)
    • 3.2 Methods for Implementing SOI
    • 3.3 SOI-enabled EAI and B2Bi Solutions
    • 3.4 Emerging SOI Solutions
    • 3.5 Data-focused SOI Solutions
  • IV. Drivers for SOI Adoption
    • 4.1 Reduce the cost and complexity of managing IT infrastructures
    • 4.2 Provide a uniform platform for B2B exchange and marketplaces
    • 4.3 Move away from proprietary technologies and solutions
    • 4.4 Enable application and data reuse
    • 4.5 Simplify business modeling
    • 4.6 Provide fine-grained access to data, functionality, and logic
  • V. ROI for Service-Oriented Integration
    • 5.1 TCO and ROI of Traditional EAI and B2Bi Solutions
    • 5.2 Improving the ROI Outlook with SOI
    • 5.3 The Movement to the “Agile Enterprise” Offers Greatest ROI
    • 5.4 Realize Integration ROI Internally First, Externally with Trusted Parties Second
  • VI. Barriers and Challenges to SOI Adoption
    • 6.1 Interoperability of SOI implementations
    • 6.2 SOI specifications are far from complete
    • 6.3 SOI can require the re-architecting of systems
    • 6.4 Lack of Semantic Integration
    • 6.5 Web Services introduces its own level of complexity and inefficiency
  • VII. Market Size and Future Trends
    • 7.1 The Convergence of EAI, B2Bi, and Data Integration Markets
    • 7.2 Market Opportunity and Sizing
    • 7.3 Current Vendor Positioning and Market Share
    • 7.4 Future Directions for Service-Oriented Integration
  • VIII. Conclusions
    • 8.1 Key Notes
    • 8.2 Decision Points
    • 8.3 Figures
    • 8.4 Tables
  • IX. Profiled Vendors
    • 9.1 SOI-enabled Web Services Platforms
    • 9.2 SOI-enabled EAI and B2Bi Solutions
    • 9.3 Emerging SOI Solutions
    • 9.4 Data-Focused SOI Solutions
  • A. Related Research
    • Reports
    • Briefing Notes
  • B. Supporting Resources
  • C. Trademark Notice and Statement of Opinion
  • About ZapThink, LLC

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