SAN FRANCISCO - Software maker Plumtree wants to team with application service providers (ASP) to deploy, host and maintain portals that will also deliver an integrated package of application services.
With Plumtree's Hosted Solutions Program, companies can subscribe to a hosted portal service and pay a monthly fee, rather than spend the money upfront to deploy and maintain the portal themselves. USinternetworking, the first ASP to team with Plumtree, is calling its portal service USiPort and signed its first client - a 15,000-seat contract - earlier this month.
USiPort simplifies USinternetworking's delivery of services by combining them on one corporate portal page. Instead of connecting to separate URLs for each application, USiPort clients connect to a range of services directly from the corporate portal page. Existing company services and documents are also viewed through the portal.
"It combines services inside the company and out," says Glenn Kelman, a Plumtree vice president.
Applications are accessed through Plumtree's so-called gadgets, modular components that embed information and services from databases, e-mail, the Internet and other sources into the portal view. Plumtree's Portal Network Architecture distributes the gadgets to multiple servers that converse via HTTP over the Internet or corporate LAN. Gadgets can run on any application server, including those supporting Java or Perl.
There are about 500 gadgets that connect to approximately 50 application suites, including those from Siebel, PeopleSoft and eRoom.
Analysts say the personalized aspect of USiPort and the ease with which services can be added will make USinternetworking attractive to more users. Plumtree also will reach a broader market by offering a hosted alternative.
Austin, Texas-based Perficient, an Internet services firm that uses emerging technologies to Web-enable complex corporate systems, uses the Plumtree portal to deliver applications such as OpenHire and Benefits.com. While Perficient hosts its own portal, Chief Technology Officer Andrew Roehr says including the delivery of applications through the portal has been a plus.
"Employees love the fact that they can come into the portal and get all the information they need," he says.
Plumtree: www.plumtree.com; USinternetworking: www.usi.net
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