Business and enterprise software, and other applications that help a business run

If you are in business and have not yet been tempted by computing in the clouds, it is time to take a glance upwards. The clouds are there, inhabited by the likes of Google for applications and almost a score of vendors on the database front, including Googlebase from Google, Metaweb, Serran, Smallthought, Caspio, and Intuit. All of these vendors are offering database services for what they say are fees lower than you would pay to purchase your own relational database system, such as Oracle, Sybase, or SQL Server.

Microsoft is getting ready to leap into the database cloud with SSDS (SQL Server Data Services) during second or third quarter 2009. Their database-as-a-service offering will be anchored by their SQL Server DBMS, augmenter by what they are terming “tight integration” with other products and technologies from Redmond. This could be seen, of course, as either a plus or a minus, depending on your view of Microsoft and their existing services.

Existing cloud database vendors claim not to be worried about Microsoft’s entry into an already crowded marketplace. Some of those vendors are sizable themselves and have no need to feel prominence envy. A lot of them, though, are smaller vendors, who say they are not worried, either. They are competing for markets, some say, that Microsoft will not be interested in, or already have a very large head start on the Redmond giant.

Still, Microsoft is a force to be reckoned with, whether in the clouds or out of them. It remains to be seen how well the software behemoth will compete with well-established niche vendors. Then again, it also remains to be seen how well the smaller vendors will compete once the giant wakes up and pokes his head into the clouds.