Report: ISVs generate average ROI of 566 percent with SUSE Appliance Program from Novell

Independent software vendors (ISVs) participating in the SUSE® Appliance Program from Novell are generating significant return on investment by delivering their products as software and virtual appliances -- pre-configured, optimized workloads -- according to an IDC white paper sponsored by Novell.

In the report "The Return on Investment of SUSE®-powered Software Appliances from Novell," IDC interviewed five ISVs participating in the program and found that, with minimal investment, these ISVs recognized an average three-year ROI of 566 percent and an average payback of less than seven months. These ISVs realized the ROI through the following means:

• Creating a more efficient development platform, thus being able to deliver new applications in 78 percent less time and at 62 percent less cost.
• Enhancing revenue generation by 14 percent by reaching new customers, getting to market quicker, improving close rates from 20 to 30 percent, and offering simplified proofs of concept.

In the study, IDC also found the following:

• ISVs that package and ship their software as SUSE-powered appliances enjoyed annual benefits of roughly $150,000 per 100 employees.
• ISVs were able to reduce their time and costs for developing key business applications by 78 percent, requiring 50 percent fewer man hours to manage and support.

IDC expects the software appliance (SWA) market to grow from $347 million in 2009 to $3.7 billion in 2014, a five-year CAGR of 60%. In the whitepaper, IDC attributed the fast growth to the fact that SWAs increase operational efficiencies with the following benefits to end users: reduced acquisition costs, zero integration and simplified management.

Novell is referred to in the report as an early mover in the software appliance market, providing program offerings for ISVs building software appliances that include specialized pricing, redistribution agreements, certification and support programs. Through the SUSE Appliance Program, Novell offers a combination of technical and business capabilities that includes everything an ISV needs to build, test, update and go to market with software appliances, including SUSE Studio and SUSE Gallery. SUSE Studio allows ISVs to build appliances for the new revenue opportunities presented by the cloud, while SUSE Gallery allows users to share, collaborate and promote appliances.

About Novell
Novell, Inc. (Nasdaq: NOVL), a leader in Intelligent Workload Management, helps organizations securely deliver and manage computing services across physical, virtual and cloud computing environments. We help customers reduce the cost, complexity, and risk associated with their IT systems through our solutions for identity and security, systems management, collaboration and Linux* based operating platforms. With our infrastructure software and ecosystem of partnerships, Novell integrates mixed IT environments, allowing people and technology to work as one. For more information, visit www.novell.com.