IBM API Connect vs SAP Cloud Platform comparison

IBM API Connect is an API management tool providing robust security, seamless REST and SOAP conversion, and flexible deployment options for diverse cloud environments. It aids organizations in securing and monetizing their APIs while streamlining the development process.

IBM API Connect offers features like a security gateway, API lifecycle management, and integration with DataPower. Its intuitive interface enhances ease of use, supporting extensive analytics and traffic management. However, there are areas for improvement in automation, system integration, and user configuration. Organizations can deploy API Connect on-premises or in the cloud, delivering secure access control and analytics for banking, financial services, and government sectors. Compliance with standards like PSD2 ensures secure external API exposure and integration with multiple systems.

• Security Gateway: Provides robust protection and data security for APIs.
• Seamless Conversion: Facilitates easy conversion between REST and SOAP protocols.
• API Management: Supports full API lifecycle management for efficient development.
• DataPower Integration: Integrates seamlessly with DataPower for enhanced functionality.
• Developer Portal: Offers a user-friendly interface for managing APIs and developers.
• Analytics: Delivers powerful insights through comprehensive API analytics.
• Flexible Deployment: Supports deployment on different cloud platforms for versatility.

• Traffic Management: Efficiently manages high volumes of API traffic without compromising performance.
• Data Protection: Ensures data is protected during API communication.
• API Monetization: Facilitates API monetization strategies to drive revenue.
• Scalability: Provides scalable solutions to handle growing demands seamlessly.

In specific industries like banking, financial services, and government sectors, IBM API Connect plays a crucial role in API management, orchestration, and regulation tasks. It provides secure access, control, and compliance with industry standards, serving as an essential gateway for data exchange and integration across multiple systems.

SAP Cloud Platform is an integration platform as a service (iPaaS) and PaaS cloud tool. It powers applications that deliver real-time insights to contribute to more effective and timely decision-making. Customers all over the world from different-sized companies use SAP Cloud Platform to build application extensions, integrate landscapes, or extend existing enterprise applications in the cloud.

The platform incorporates innovative technologies, including big data, Internet of Things (IoT), artificial intelligence (AI), and machine learning (ML). SAP Cloud Platform supports native services and products by SAP, as well as partners with popular platforms such as Microsoft Azure, Google Cloud Platform, Amazon AWS, and Alibaba Cloud.

Users of the product can extend, integrate, and develop applications on premises and in the cloud. The product offers flexibility, agility, and scalability, as it enables easy integration and connection of different applications within the platform. The solution is based on open standards and provides a wide range of development tools.

SAP has announced that they are removing SAP Cloud Platform as a brand name and moving its capabilities within SAP Business Technology Platform (SAP BTP). The features of SAP Cloud Platform will be integrated into SAP BTP to assist with data management and analytics, alongside other components of the platform. Existing customers of SAP Cloud Platform will continue to benefit from its products under SAP Integration Suite and SAP Extension Suite.

SAP Cloud Platform Capabilities

The solution offers a wide variety of tools, application capabilities, services, and application programming interface (API). These can be categorized in the following ways:

• Enterprise extensions: The features of SAP Cloud Platform in this category include SAP Localization Hub, Tax Service, Data Enrichment for SAP S/4HANA, SAP Data Quality Management, SAP Business Application Studio, ABAP environment, and SAP Web IDE.
  
  
• Intelligent BPM: This set of features includes SAP Intelligent Robotic Process Automation (RPA), Process Visibility, Business Rules, and Workflow.
  
  
• Integration Suite: The features of SAP Cloud Platform in this category include Open Connectors, OData Provisioning, API Management, Cloud Integration, and Smart Data Integration.
  
  
• Digital experience: Features in this category include SAP Conversational AI, Mobile Services, Document Service, Portal, SAP Build, SAPUI5, and SAP Fiori Cloud.
  
  
• Data-driven insights: This category of capabilities includes SAP Leonardo Internet of Things, SAP Data Intelligence, SAP Edge Services, IoT, SAP HANA Cloud, SAP Web Analytics, SAP Streaming Analytics, SAP ASE Service, and SAP Analytics Cloud.
  
  
• Platform foundation: Alert Notification, Application Logging, Data Retention Manager, Job Scheduler, Java Server, and Transport Management are included in this group of capabilities.

SAP Cloud Platform Benefits

The platform has many benefits which improve their client’s workflows. They include the following:

• SAP Cloud Platform facilitates the seamless integration of existing solutions and hybrid system landscapes.
  
  
• The solution assists companies to deliver tailored end-to-end interfaces for improved user experience through software development kits (SDKs).
  
  
• It simplifies application interface management through the option of building apps in the Kubernetes environment.
  
  
• SAP Cloud Platform simplifies the development of native business applications through the various development tools and capabilities it offers.
  
  
• It provides companies with a wide range of pre-configured business services.
  
  
• Companies are offered the possibility to streamline the integration of new apps with a lowered overall cost of ownership.
  
  
• The product can reduce costs for organizations, as it does not require an up-front investment in software or hardware.
  
  
• The solution can increase productivity for developers through its supported open programming standards.

Reviews from Real Users

Shylaraj AK, a senior architect at a construction company, describes SAP Cloud Platform as easy to maintain, great features, and helpful support, which attributes to his high rating for the product.

Ehab-El H., chief executive officer at Asis, likes SAP Cloud Platform because it is easy to use with a fast deployment and straightforward setup.