3-GIS: Software as a Service (SaaS)

3-GIS, an Alabama based software and services company has announced it will offer a Software as a Service (SaaS) pricing model for their thin client solutions to its consumers in the utility, telecommunications and Homeland Security industries.

With the SaaS subscription model, 3-GIS will eliminate the customer’s need to install or maintain its software. Instead of purchasing software with a one-time fee, customers will pay a monthly subscription fee. This subscription fee will alleviate the customer's burden of software maintenance, ongoing operation, and IT support.

3-GIS developed this subscription business model to allow companies that don’t have the financial and/or personnel resources an opportunity to utilize a GIS with an extremely low cost of ownership. The SaaS subscription model allows for the avoidance of capital expenditures (CAPEX) and frees up a company’s cash to focus on other critical needs. “There are consumers in the GIS field who have wanted an alternative to the traditional pricing model for quite some time,” says Tommy Siniard, Chief Technical Officer of 3-GIS. “Considering the current economic climate, we feel like our subscription model is a great answer for these consumers and are happy to be the first to provide it.”

“We see SaaS in GIS as the future for small to medium sized telecom and utility companies,” says Tom Counts, President of 3-GIS. “We want to take the headache of database tuning, software version management, landbase currency, hardware scalability, and reliability away from our customers. This approach alleviates the barrier to entry for many companies desiring a GIS solution.”

In addition to the Software as a Service model, 3-GIS will continue to offer a traditional licensing and maintenance model. Leasing options and Enterprise License Agreements are also available to customers looking for alternative pricing schemes.