Top SaaS Growth Markets
Momentum continues to build behind software as a service. Gartner is forecasting worldwide software SaaS revenue to hit $7.5 billion in 2009, a 17.7 percent increase from 2008 revenue of $6.4 billion. And it’s not stopping there. Expectations for sales total $14 billion by 2013. Channel Insider breaks out the most promising SaaS markets for the channel.
By Carolyn April
Total Worldwide SaaS Market
Gartner is forecasting worldwide software as a service (SaaS) revenue to hit $7.5 billion in 2009, an 18 percent increase from 2008 revenue of $6.4 billion
Looking Ahead
Gartner expects SaaS growth to continue with its foot on the gas, propelled to $14 billion in worldwide sales by 2013.
Top Growth Drivers, the Triple CCCs
The content, communications and collaboration space is generating the highest amount of SaaS-based revenue with $2.6 billion in 2009, up from $2.14 billion in 2008.
The Salesforce.com effect
Customer relationship management (CRM) software was the early SaaS killer app, and continues to be a leading category today. The SaaS-based CRM is on target to generate $2.3 billion in 2009, up from $1.9 billion in 2008. Consider that SaaS CRM sales were only $500 million just four years ago.
ERP Holds Its Own
Long-considered one of those mission-critical applications that organizations would be reluctant to digest as an outside service, ERP has, to this point, bucked that belief. SaaS-based sales held their own in 2009, moving up slightly from $1.18 billion to $1.24 billion year on year.
Supply Chain Services
Revenues for SaaS-based sales of supply chain management (SCM) software went up year on year, increasing from $710 million in 2008 to an expected $826 million in 2009.
Rounding Out the Totals
The rest of the market is made up of office suites ($68 million in 2009, up from $56 million in 2008), digital content creation ($62 million in 2009, up from $44 million in 2008) and the fabled "other" category that encompasses the rest of application software. Other revenues were $472 million this year, up from $387 million last year.