SINGAPORE, March 12 /PRNewswire/ -- Service-oriented architecture (SOA) is a fairly recent phenomenon which often means different things to different people. While the intended benefits for businesses are business agility, business-IT alignment and better management of the IT environment, there is considerable skepticism amongst many, given that vendors have adopted varied approaches.

Several interest groups, notably advocated by technology vendors, have endeavored to succinctly define and promulgate concepts as 'the' accepted SOA standard. No de facto standards are known to-date. Neither is a clear roadmap towards SOA adoption. Not yet.

In fact, still in its infancy, the history books on SOA are only just being written. "For many years, SOA was narrowly defined as being limited to web services. In reality, it is far more complex," notes Subba Iyer, director at global growth consulting company, Frost & Sullivan.

Hence the term 'SOA' has been loosely applied, without clear sight of being able to deliver the real intended business benefits.

Iyer shares his thoughts on SOA at an analyst briefing to be held on Thursday, March 15, 2007, 11:00am (GMT +08:00). The briefing seeks to draw key learnings from SOA deployments and shed light on some of the key trends in Asia-Pacific based on Frost & Sullivan's end-user research.

Highlights include an analysis of some of the SOA implementations and the SOA trends for 2007, as well as identifying the chief issues faced by organizations in Asia-Pacific. The briefing will also highlight what vendors need to do to convert this abstract concept into a real business benefit for end-users.

Those interested in participating in the web/tele-conference should send an email to Letticia Leopold at letticia.leopold@frost.com with the following information: title of analyst briefing, your full name, media/company name, title, telephone number, email address and country. Upon receipt of the above information, the registration, weblink, dial-in number and pass code details for the live briefing will be emailed to you.

Frost & Sullivan, a global growth consulting company, has been partnering with clients to support the development of innovative strategies for more than 40 years. The company's industry expertise integrates growth consulting, growth partnership services, and corporate management training to identify and develop opportunities. Frost & Sullivan serves an extensive clientele that includes Global 1000 companies, emerging companies, and the investment community by providing comprehensive industry coverage that reflects a unique global perspective and combines ongoing analysis of markets, technologies, econometrics, and demographics. For more information, visit http://www.frost.com/ .

CONTACT: Sarah Lourdes Corporate Communications - Asia Pacific P: +603.6207.1030 E: sarah.lourdes@frost.com Letticia Leopold Corporate Communications - Asia Pacific P: +603.6207.1031 E: letticia.leopold@frost.com Mireya Castilla Corporate Communications - North America P: +1.210.247.3830 E: mireya.castilla@frost.com Jorgelina Pecina Corporate Communications - Latin America P: +54.11.4777.9951 E: jorgelina.pecina@frost.com Sharmin Jassal Corporate Communications - Australia & New Zealand P: +61.2.8247.8900 E: sharmin.jassal@frost.com Nimisha Iyer Corporate Communications - South Asia & Middle East P: +91.22.4001.3400 E: niyer@frost.com Srividhya Parthasarathy Corporate Communications - Europe P: +91.44.4204.4668 E: sparthasarathy@frost.com

CONTACT: Sarah Lourdes, Corporate Communications - Asia Pacific,
+603-6207-1030, or sarah.lourdes@frost.com , or Letticia Leopold, Corporate
Communications - Asia Pacific, +603-6207-1031, or letticia.leopold@frost.com ,
or Mireya Castilla, Corporate Communications - North America, +1-210-247-3830,
or mireya.castilla@frost.com , or Jorgelina Pecina, Corporate Communications -
Latin America, +54-11-4777-9951, or jorgelina.pecina@frost.com , or Sharmin
Jassal, Corporate Communications - Australia & New Zealand, +61-2-8247-8900,
or sharmin.jassal@frost.com , or Nimisha Iyer, Corporate Communications -
South Asia & Middle East, +91-22-4001-3400, or niyer@frost.com , or Srividhya
Parthasarathy, Corporate Communications - Europe, +91-44-4204-4668, or
sparthasarathy@frost.com , all of Frost & Sullivan

Web site: http://www.frost.com/