Symantec and Google didn't get Oracle CEO Larry Ellison's memo that SAAS and cloud computing are overhyped. Symantec bought security SAAS provider MessageLabs for a bundle while Google simplified pricing for its security SAAS. Web services security for enterprise applications and messaging and collaboration tools is alive and well.Oracle CEO Larry Ellison roiled the waves recently when he mocked
Web-based computing, but software as a service is doing just fine, as new moves
from Google and Symantec testify.
Symantec moved to buy MessageLabs on Oct. 8 for $695 million
in the largest security SAAS deal to date, dwarfing Google's $625 million
purchase of Postini in 2007. Google Oct. 8 meanwhile tweaked the pricing model
for its Postini-based MessageLabs SAAS security software and agreed
to archive e-mail for up to 10 years.
The 451 Group Analyst Paul Roberts said SAAS security was the main thrust of
Symantec's bid because MessageLabs has one of the most mature platforms for
provisioning, delivering and managing messaging and SAAS security services.
Click here to read about IT security's 2008 acquisition spree.
This is a big deal for businesses that want to trade their on-premises
security solutions for SAAS and find themselves worn thin by Federal Rules of
Civil Procedure regulations for e-mail archiving. Roberts noted:
The addition of [the] MessageLabs
platform gives Symantec … a mature, revenue-generating SAAS portfolio that
includes e-mail, IM and Web threat detection. It also gives the company the
development expertise to move ahead with its more comprehensive security SAAS
vision, encompassing anti-data leakage, compliance and data archiving.
Roberts added that Symantec's huge channel and sales force, coupled with the
failure of players such as Google to execute within the enterprise space, give
it the opportunity to jump to the head of the pack in security SAAS. Ouch!
In short, MessageLabs is the SAAS security market leader and Symantec is
clearly betting a big farm on it. Perhaps Ellison needs to bring out his fire
hose to throw more cold water on SAAS. Or perhaps he'll at least make an
exception for security-driven SAAS.
Struggles in the enterprise or not, Google is looking for new ways to make its
Postini assets more attractive to corporations. Google changed its pricing to
reflect the longevity it believes corporations desire from an SAAS service.
Economic woes are unlikely to slow
acquisitions in the IT security space. Click here to read more.
Google now offers Message Discovery for $45 per user
per year for up to 10 years of e-mail retention, or $25 per user, per year, for
just one year of archiving. Until Oct. 8, Message Discovery cost $25 per user,
per year, for one year of retention, plus $10 per user, per year, for each
additional year of retention.
With 10 years of service, Google claims businesses won't have to worry about
hitting storage caps while allowing users to search and recover messages for
legal discovery. Google Message Discovery, which includes anti-spam and anti-virus
filtering, also supports the ubiquitous Microsoft Exchange and IBM
Lotus Domino e-mail servers.
One page Symantec can take from Google's book with regard to future MessageLabs
upgrades is that the marketing department should never miss an opportunity to
tout the benefits of SAAS over on-premises solutions. Bill Kee, a member of
Google's product marketing team, wrote in this blog post:
"When the total cost of an on-premise[s] security and archiving solution
is taken into account, keeping e-mail over the course of seven years can cost
more than $200 per user per year. Taking advantage of Google's economies of
scale, you can achieve the same objectives for only $45 per user per
year."
