Web Services Hit Glass Ceiling

NEW YORK -- Complex Web-based systems are gaining momentum and are now widely deployed in the online banking and financial sector. But IT managers here at yesterdays Web Services on Wall Street conference are wary about pushing the technology too far.

A number of vendors, such as Sun Microsystems Inc. (Nasdaq: SUNW) and IBM Corp. (NYSE: IBM) have put their weight behind what are known as Web services in an effort to tap into the lucrative financial industry.

However, a number of conference attendees felt that Web services have their limits. IT managers and directors told NDCF that the technology is no panacea for the challenges they face.

”My understanding is that the expectation of performance on the trading floor is substantially higher than what Web services delivers," said one IT director at an investment bank, who asked not to be named.

Specifically, he felt that Web services cannot provide the “millisecond response times” needed in many trading environments.