As underlying Web services standards congeal and the technology matures, more and more companies will be moving more deeply into Web services, and ultimately, service-oriented architectures (SOAs). Many hope to solve integration headaches, while others want to make better use of their current information technology resources.

In order to gauge the state of Web services and SOA, Webservices.Org recently conducted a comprehensive survey of almost 1,000 developers and managers representing a wide variety of business sizes and industries. Respondents were asked to describe their current infrastructure, future plans, and opinions on Web services and SOA in general.

The survey found that while there are relatively few advanced Web services sites – and even fewer bona fide SOA implementations – managers and executives clearly understand the value proposition this new architecture has to offer. A large number of respondents are currently either deploying simple interfaces, or have new projects under development, the survey finds. Most businesses that do have efforts underway report they are seeing tangible benefits in terms of reuse, developer productivity, and cost savings.

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