PaaS is growing, market worth billions

PaaS is thriving as a cloud model.

If you've studied the cloud market, you know that the simple name "cloud" hides some subtleties and vital distinctions within the technology. Deciding how much infrastructure you want delivered will be vital. Does your company need applications delivered through a Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) model, or is internal application development a priority? In the latter case, it may be time to consider Platform-as-a-Service (PaaS). Keeping track of each segment of the cloud market can be helpful when making these decisions. Even though no two companies are the same, there are definite links and connections, and observing how trends affect you could be an immense help in selecting a strategy.

Survey says: Cloud use is changing A recent study by MarketsandMarkets brought positive news for the PaaS industry, indicating that this type of deployment has caught on with businesses. The early years of the cloud phenomenon have seen SaaS and Infrastructure-as-a-Service (IaaS) models in the lead, but the research indicated that PaaS is now growing more quickly than the other approaches. Explaining that both large and small providers have products to offer users, MarketsandMarkets labeled PaaS a "dynamic and competitive" market. This can only be a good thing if you want to commit to a deployment of this type, as it indicates a vote of confidence from the IT world.

The actual numbers used to describe the industry's growth are impressive. MarketsandMarkets calculated that PaaS is now worth $1.28 billion overall and will reach $6.94 billion in 2016, which means it will expand at 32.54 percent annually in the interim. That's a significant number and shows that users have found ways to make the technology work for them.

Great expectations for the PaaS segment of the cloud market have come from many different sources. As Real Business contributor Sacha Labourey noted, PaaS is meant for rapid application development, with numerous industries using it in this way. That's a good thing for the entire organization. With rapid application development at its core, PaaS streamlines much of the development process. This means technical users can get apps to market faster than ever before, and the tools are simple enough for even non-technical users to get into the application development game. From HR departments to travel firms, there are many potential users out there. The apps can be deployed on SaaS models, uniting the two types of cloud services.

Time to look inward Now, with the promise and place of PaaS established by industry overviews, it's time to look in the mirror and see whether there is a role for this technology at your company. Chances are, there is at least some space for a more application development process within your operations, no matter your industry. Whether this takes the form of an internal mobile program or B2B software that will strengthen your links to trading partners, the opportunity could be there to improve processes dramatically.