IPA IP 2026 Question 19
A question IPA Japan published in 令和8年度 ITパスポート試験 公開問題 問19, translated into English. ITPEC is based on the same exams.
Which of the following is an appropriate business operator, or a form of service, that provides users with application software installed on a server via the Internet?
Explanation
ASP (Application Service Provider) — a business operator, or the form of service, that lets users use application software on its server over the Internet.
With an ASP the software runs on the provider’s server, and users reach it through the Internet, usually with a web browser, paying a usage fee. The user does not install or maintain the software itself; updates and operation are the provider’s job. SaaS is the same idea in its cloud form, typically one shared multi-tenant system for many customers.
Answer (a)
Why not others:
- •(b) — an ISP (Internet Service Provider) provides the connection to the Internet, not application software
- •(c) — outsourcing is contracting out business operations or system development and operation to an outside company in general; it is not specifically providing software over the Internet
- •(d) — a data warehouse is a database that stores large amounts of time-series data from business systems for analysis and decision making
Key rule: ASP / SaaS provide applications over the Internet, ISP provides the Internet connection, and outsourcing is handing work to an outside contractor.
System Strategy · AI-written, may contain errors
This question comes from the past questions IPA Japan publishes, translated into English by ITPEC Practice. ITPEC Practice is an independent study tool and is not affiliated with IPA or ITPEC. See the original paper (PDF) or Report an issue.