The
MicroStrategy/ Intelligroup ASP
A. Turner - April 18th, 2000
Event Summary
In
March, MicroStrategy Incorporated (NASDAQ: MSTR), a provider of Intelligent
E-Business software, and Intelligroup, Inc., (NASDAQ: ITIG), an Application
Services Provider (ASP), announced a strategic ASP alliance. Through its
ASPPlus offering, Intelligroup will host, implement, manage, and support
applications developed on MicroStrategy's Intelligent E-Business Platform.
Through Intelligroup's ASPPlus offering, companies can take advantage
of MicroStrategy's software to change how they run their business and
relate to their customers. Using MicroStrategy's electronic customer relationship
management (eCRM) capabilities in combination with its business intelligence
offering, companies can analyze customer behavior and gain insight into
their preferences. The company is then able to interact with its customers
via web, wireless, and voice with personalized messages and offers.
As
part of the agreement, Intelligroup plans to send more than one hundred
employees through the MicroStrategy education program in the next four
months to ensure that integration will occur smoothly and quickly.
Market
Impact
"Our
strategic alliance with Intelligroup brings MicroStrategy products to
an entirely new set of customers, increasing our presence in the small
and midsize markets," said Sanju K. Bansal, chief operating officer of
MicroStrategy Incorporated. "ASPPlus gives customers easy access to MicroStrategy
products which are customized and hosted by Intelligroup. . ."
The
benefits of this alliance are easily identified. Intelligroup offers ASP
solutions through partnerships with SAP, PeopleSoft, Oracle, Baan, Datastream,
Hyperion, and Compaq. Together these companies can deliver a rich feature
set to the small and mid-size market by leveraging their core technologies.
Similar alliances are almost becoming a weekly event. For instance the
recent IBM, i2, and Ariba alliance is designed to provide customers with
a greater solution set and the associated companies an extended reach
into the marketplace. We expect this trend to continue.
User
Recommendations
Users considering a CRM solution now have many choices. The new alliances
are designed to offer lower cost thresholds and access to robust solutions
previously unavailable to small and mid-size companies. We recommend considering
as many options possible.
While
these offerings seem to include the software and the "kitchen sink," users
need to identify their immediate and long-term requirements. Also not
frequently discussed are the network, security, and possible software
upgrades required to integrate these solutions. Overall the news is positive
as these alliances provide consumers a greater set of solutions to choose
from.