This IDC study describes and analyzes the emerging composite applications market through a supply-side lens by asking a group of major service providers about their views of the current and future demand for such solutions, how they are preparing themselves to effectively respond to these new client needs, and what they have done so far in this area. On the basis of the results from this study, IDC proposes several recommendations to help systems integrators get ready for this new services opportunity.

"Although there is not much demand for composite applications yet, many service vendors are already active in the market for composite applications, either by building custom solutions for a client or by building prepackaged solutions," said Erik Bruin, research manager, European Business Solution Services. "Although many SIs are limiting themselves to only building composite applications on a one-on-one custom basis, some vendors are also pushing prepackaged composite applications into the market. However, despite the fact that these prepackaged composite applications are in fact repeatable software solutions, the SIs also stress the need to configure them in such a way that they deliver competitive differentiation to the client by incorporating certain aspects of 'uniqueness.'"