“Web Services” refers to a next-generation distributed computing model. The model assumes that the various components of the architecture will be versioned, replaced or augmented. Thus, web services are packaged into ‘profiles’ that act as a pre-configured solution. When most people think of Web Services, they tend to think of the WS-Basic Profile, that is, the combination of SOAP, UDDI & WSDL.

It is apparent that the rapid evolution of Web Services will continue to challenge any single definition. However, the guiding principles for Web Services will likely remain a combination of:

1. Service Oriented (capable of distributed computing)
2. Specification based, and mostly open
3. Use of meta-languages, focused on programming language and platform independence

Many view web services as the next big thing in commercial software because it standardizes interoperability across platforms. This enables internal applications to connect more easily as well as provides a means to connect business-trading partners via the Extended Enterprise.