What is the benefit of Anything as a service (XaaS)

What is the benefit of Anything as a service (XaaS)

The world is changing, and so are the ways individuals and businesses gain access to resources.

The traditional model of purchasing products, services, infrastructure, and other tools has largely been replaced by an on-demand services model where users can consume any number of applications over the internet. This new model has essentially shifted from owning assets to renting them.

This idea of providing anything as a service originated with Software-as-a-Service (Saas), then expanded to Platform-as-a-Service (PaaS) and Infrastructure-as-a-Service (IaaS). But what about other as-a-service offerings?

What is XaaS?

Anything-as-a-Service (XaaS) is a term that describes the model of gaining access to services and applications over the internet on-demand. While XaaS may seem synonymous with SaaS, this isn't entirely accurate. Instead, we can consider SaaS to be a subset of XaaS. This eliminates the need for making large purchases for ownership and instead provides access for a small monthly or annual fee.

As mentioned, SaaS, PaaS, and IaaS pioneered this movement. At its core, XaaS explains this methodology in the idea that anything can be offered as a service as long as there's the internet.

Here are a few other as-a-service models that can utilize these same principles and fall under the umbrella of XaaS.

1. Communication-as-a-Service - Many communication platforms are available today, such as Skype, Google Hangouts, Facebook Messenger, WhatsApp, Viber, etc. These platforms allow people to chat, send messages, video call, and make phone calls.

2. Data-as-a-service - There is a lot of data out there, and if we want to make sense of it all, we need some way to organize it. With a XaaS based on data services, we can create our databases, run queries against them, and even visualize the results on demand and within the confines of a cloud computing environment.

3. Education-as-a-Service - Online courses offered on-demand and under a subscription model are a prime example of the power of XaaS. The ability to learn new skills, acquire knowledge, and advance your career entirely online and at your own pace is very appealing. This makes Education-as-a-Service a perfect opportunity to implement XaaS principles.

4. Entertainment-as-a-Service - Another excellent example of how XaaS can be used is through entertainment. Netflix, Spotify, Hulu, HBO Go, Amazon Prime Video, and others provide us with entertainment content on demand.

5. Healthcare-as-a-Services - A recent trend in healthcare is the use of telemedicine to connect patients with doctors, nurses, and other medical professionals. This allows patients to receive care remotely without leaving home and travelling to a hospital.

Final Thoughts

XaaS is quickly becoming one of the most popular business models because it offers flexibility and scalability. It also allows businesses to focus more on their core competencies rather than spending time managing local infrastructure, tools, and resources.

DNA Digital is looking toward many future projects utilizing XaaS principles. XaaS applications such as CRM, ERP, Analytics, and AI hold many promises.