This week, NetSuite, Inc., strengthened its position in the on-demand software market by announcing a new set of eCommerce solutions to manage eBay online sales.

The new alliance capitalizes on one of the largest pools of small- and mid-size businesses (SMBs) in the world. eBay is a channel to market which I’ve been telling many Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) companies should be a key component of their go-to-market strategies.

NetSuite’s expanded on-demand business management capabilities will enable millions of businesses selling goods and services via eBay to leverage a single, integrated platform to handle their inventory, warehouse management, accounting, sales, marketing and hosting requirements.

NetSuite’s multi-lingual and multi-currency recognition system will also enable eBay businesses to manage their international listings including scheduling, order management, fulfillment and shipping processes.

The turnkey, all-in-one package should appeal to many eBay sellers who are quickly growing from home-based endeavors to SMBs that must convert their manual processes to more sophisticated systems which can ensure reliable and profitable business processes. The NetSuite solution manages eBay listings centrally, and includes built-in UPS and FedEx shipping tools.

The new NetSuite/eBay solution comes on the heels of Salesforce.com’s recent introduction of its AppStore which is also aimed at providing a seamless method of performing online transactions. However, Salesforce.com’s AppStore is only aimed at supporting its AppExchange partners and their customers, while NetSuite’s new offering is targeting eBay’s vast community of 222 million buyers and sellers.

This isn’t NetSuite’s first initiative to open a new channel-to-market for its SaaS solutions. Last June, the company teamed up with CompUSA to leverage the retailer’s access to SMBs.

Interestingly, NetSuite describes its new capabilities as being “Amazon-like”. I’ve been telling clients and various other audiences that Amazon, Apple, Yahoo, Google and other online outlets, along with eBay, will become important channels to market for SaaS. Over time, I think these outlets will play a similar role for managed IT services, such as managed messaging, security, storage and back-up services.

SaaS vendors and managed service providers (MSPs) shouldn’t focus on these online outlets alone to distribute their on-demand solutions. Business service companies, such as ADP and American Express, have clearly indicated an interest in on-demand solutions with their acquisition of Employease and alliance with Reardon Commerce respectively. You should also expect business process outsourcers, especially the offshore-based companies, to buy their way into the SaaS and managed services business, as Cognizant did in September with its acquisition of Aimnet Solutions.

In the meantime, NetSuite deserves credit for being the first of the SaaS providers to capitalize on the eBay channel. The timing of this event should enhance NetSuite’s standing as a SaaS leader and its preparation for an IPO later this year.