Everywhere you turn in ERP-land these days, up pops another app marketplace. The roster of ERP players large and small with online showcases includes Lawson, Microsoft, NetSuite, Openbravo, SAP (with EcoHub and its upcoming SAP Store), and xTuple.

Today�s ERP app marketplaces have a stronger focus on window-shopping than trying to be a software equivalent to Apple�s iTunes store. Vendors are using their marketplace websites to draw attention to an increasing variety of their own and third-party ERP app extensions as well as complementary products and services, segmented by industry, line of business, and product type.

What do you think is driving the move by ERP apps vendors to open marketplaces and what might those sites may evolve into? Here�s some of my current thinking on both topics: