Optaros Inc., an assembler of Next Generation Internet applications (NGI) leveraging open source components, today announced a survey entitled, "How Will Enterprises Deliver Next Generation Internet Applications?" The survey, based on independent research, is the first survey to quantitatively assess what methods enterprises are using to deliver NGI applications. The report is available online at survey.optaros.com and focuses on the enterprises response to heightened customer and market expectations for online experiences and interactions that are rewriting the rules for how the Internet is being leveraged.

The report addresses a crucial question facing companies today: How will enterprises respond to customer demands and competitive threats and deliver the next-generation of Internet applications? The survey generated more than 400 responses from senior decision makers. Key findings of the survey include:

• Custom development is being chosen by a ratio of 4:1 over off-the-shelf software to deliver NGI functionality
• More than 60 percent of enterprises are aware of customer expectations for two way Internet interactions
• Only 19 percent give their current online applications high marks in their ability to offer two way interactions
• More than 64 percent of companies that have added NGI functionality are achieving positive results

These findings contradict questions raised by skeptics on the value received from investments in NGI applications. The survey results clearly show that the majority of companies investing in NGI solutions have already achieved positive results. The massive 4:1 preference for using custom development over off-the-shelf software for implementing NGI applications is striking and reflects the need for each company to differentiate its online presence.

"The survey clearly shows that the need for companies to differentiate their online presence is leading to large amounts of custom development," said Marc Osofsky, vice president of marketing at Optaros. "Historically, customization has proven to be a costly approach to achieve differentiation. However, enterprises can choose an assembly methodology built with enterprise-class open source components to achieve more control over their NGI functionality and the ability to differentiate their brands and customer experience, but with a lower cost of total ownership than by custom-building their own solutions."