Mitigating the Risks of Engaging in a Software as a Service (SaaS) Relationship
Speakers:
Frank Bruno, Manager, Intellectual Property Management, Iron Mountain
Tim Cummins, President and Executive Director, IACCM

On Demand

The very high cost and growing complexity of customized software has led to the growth of Application Service Providers (ASP's) selling Software as a Service (SaaS) - companies that supply software applications and/or software-related services over the Internet. Instead of purchasing the software outright via a license, users can take advantage of a SaaS subscription or pay-as-you-go model, eliminating the costs associated with IT infrastructure and headcount.

The ROI for adopting SaaS is clearly high and because of that, many companies overlook the risks associated with entering into a SaaS relationship. Consider the following:

• What if your trusted ASP goes out of business or gets acquired?
• Are you confident your company would continue to have access to your applications and data?
• How protected are you against loss of support by your ASP?

When engaging in a SaaS relationship with an ASP, setting up a technology escrow agreement is critical for protecting your software since loss of support by the vendor will mean loss of the application entirely and access to all the proprietary data along with it. Given the potential disastrous consequences of this situation, special attention needs to be paid when setting up the terms and conditions of the escrow contract when engaging in a SaaS relationship.

Watch the replay and learn about:

• the emerging use of SaaS in today’s business environment
• traditional software licensing versus subscribing to SaaS
• best practice planning for SaaS subscribers
• protecting your applications and data through the use of technology escrow

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