Group 4 Information Systems Management

Case Submission: Jamcracker

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Q1. How does Jamcracker fit in the ASP space?

Ans. The business model was mainly based on the anticipated future growth of ASPs. It is
mainly about the concept of providing a one-stop solution for all business needs for an
organization. Their model was centered on ASP, but it was not only about ASP; it was of an
ASP aggregator.
They have collaborated with many other ASP partners to combine application services
through its enterprise IT platform, “Jamcracker Enterprise,” into comprehensive offerings.
The ASP aggregator model is essentially like a bridge between the ASPs and the customers,
helping both the parties in the process.

For example, an ASP that provided a message application and another that provided desktop
productivity software could, using Jamcracker technology, appear to the consumer as a built-
in service deal. Customers can pick and choose from an “a la carte” menu with the
applications inside the virtual “ASP cafeteria.” The customer would keep a single contractual
relationship with the Jamcracker rather than numerous associations with specialized ASPs.
Users would login to the Jamcracker platform to get all the desired functionality rather than
individually onto all the ASP system.

In a way, for the customer, they provided the flexibility of choosing services according to the
user’s needs with faster implementation, reduced cost, IT skilled workforce, and all-round (24
* 7) support. For ASPs, it facilitated them to concentrate on their core competencies and
outsource other extra activities like customer acquisition cost, broadening of their offerings,
and scale to companies like Jamcracker.

Jamcracker has the first-mover advantage in the ASP aggregator space. They tried to avoid IT
log jams using web-based technology for their clients and empower them to move towards
their business objectives smoothly.

Q2. Identify the challenges that Jamcracker must address to create a sustainable
business model?

Ans. The business model proposed (ASP aggregation) was an entirely new market concept for
distributing IT services. To get success in the market, they needed a sufficient infrastructure
to support economically feasible industry relations and strong growth prospects. The ASP
aggregator industry is in its nascent stage, along with the ASP industry, and there is a lot of
apprehension about it from a customer viewpoint.

To overcome this, Jamcracker must educate its customers about the benefits and advantages
of this emerging trend, i.e., the new ASP integrator way to reduce their IT opportunities. Most
of the ASPs in the market are not standardized, and integrating all those into the Jamcracker
environment poses a technical challenge for Jamcracker along with concerns related to
Group 4 Information Systems Management

service level quality, privacy, and security. Thus, they needed to take the role of an industry
leader and help in standardizing the processes across the industry, which would help in
decreasing the overhead cost in the near future.

They need to address customer’s problems related to the ASP model’s assistance, information
security, and privacy in a way that the customers feel anchored with the ASP technology.

Also, migrating the customer legacy system to ASP will lead to compatibility, configuration,
and setup challenges. As Jamcracker targets to provide their customer a one-stop solution for
all their needs, there could be apprehensions from the customers regarding the reliability of
the application solution in terms of uptime, backups, and quick customer services, etc.

Another challenge that Jamcracker must address is of legal and regulatory barriers of
information and data sharing. Jamcraker’s business model thrives on the sharing of different
services among a large group of customers from varied industries. The knowledge of required
legality plays a vital role as these laws vary from country to country. This could be related to
the recent change in the regulation of cloud data storage in India, which led companies to
change their data storage strategy to comply with the Government.

All the mentioned challenges need the involvement of external parties like governments,
service providers, and customers. Addressing them will give Jamcracker a competitive
advantage and will help them in the sustainability of their existing business model.