Outsourcers as Web Platforms

Outsourcing companies such as IBM, HP, Accenture, EDS, and others like them have very extensive and robust IT infrastructures for supporting their necessarily large clients. Their holdings include voice/data networks, databases, servers, telephony devices, storage devices etc.

Some of this infrastructure is either unused or under-utilized at any given time. These companies could make money by exposing their IT infrastructure via Web Services. Their (Web Services) API could then be used by other smaller players that service other companies.

In other words, just like Amazon.com and Google.com, the outsources could create a Web platform upon which others could build their own businesses. What these businesses could be is something that we will have to wait and find out. [They could be offering the same outsourcing services for the lower end of the market where the larger outsources' cost structure precludes their presence.]

But there is no reason why a company such as IBM could not re-package itself as a Web Platform and make money through its Web Services.