The Backend as a Service (BaaS) model is one of the fastest growing trends in the IT space. It’s a form of cloud computing that makes it easier for application developers to setup and operate a cloud backend.” But will this trend last, or become old news? Here are some pros and cons of BaaS in 2013:
Pro:
Although it’s a fairly new concept, analyst groups like MarketsandMarkets predict that the BaaS market will reach $7.7 billion by 2017.
Con:
Because BaaS is “trending,” there is some oversaturation when it comes to vendors entering the space. Luckily, the vendors that are the most likely to fizzle out are smaller, which should help out some of the big players maintain their market share.
Pro:
Backend development is time-consuming and a bit monotonous. An article on SearchSOA says “According to Michael Facemire, senior analyst at Forrester Research, the task of connecting back-end data to the front end is particularly painful for front-end developers, who are most comfortable working in JavaScript on the client side. ” Making that integration step, that transformation, from back-end data systems to front-end experiences is one of the greatest challenges they have,” he said.” By reducing time spent on this type of development, front-end developers can begin to focus more on UI/UX to build more innovative products.
Con:
If the BaaS service you use is a single data centre or cloud platform, some of your users may experience longer load times if they are accessing your app from a far away region. Large-scale vendors help mitigate this problem, but you do lose a certain amount of infrastructure control if you store it in the cloud.
Pro:
By putting application infrastructure on the cloud, it helps bring us that much closer to a true “Internet of Things” ecosystem. BaaS brings together the standard elements of an operating system while also unifying resources in a single system for mobile developers to access.
Con:
The industry has been developing at such a rapid pace, there is a gap in knowledge when it comes to employing cloud services for application infrastructure. Gartner warned in a press release that organizations should ensure “that mobile applications built outside IT are subject to the same oversight and governance as those built within IT.”
