Since my last blog entry correctly predicted the pace of merger and acquisition activity in the Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) was primed to accelerate just three days before RightNow acquired SalesNet, I figure I’d test my prognostication skills again by predicting another important market trend in the SaaS and managed services sector.

This time I’m predicting that several SaaS and managed service providers are going to team with the major Internet companies and hardware vendors to dramatically expand their channels to market.

I’ve been suggesting this trend privately to my clients for the past six months. And, the series of joint ventures and strategic alliances announced between eBay, Yahoo, Google and Dell in the past week gives me even greater confidence that my prediction is about to come true.

Specifically, I expect eBay, Yahoo, Google and possibly AOL along with leading PC/server vendors to resell various SaaS and managed service offerings to consumers and SMBs (small- and mid-size businesses).

Yahoo has been offering web hosting and other business oriented services for a while. eBay has also been expanding its array of eCommerce software services. In April, Google added the OneBox feature to its Search Appliance. Google OneBox enables users to quickly find relevant information, such as phone numbers or inventory and sales data, that can be easily integrated into various business applications. Charter members of the OneBox program include SaaS providers Employease, Netsuite, Salesforce.com and SAS, as well as Cisco, Cognos and Oracle.

While Google’s OneBox for Enterprises isn’t reselling third-party SaaS solutions, it is significantly enhancing these ‘on-demand’ services by integrating the company’s powerful search capabilities into the third-party CRM, ERP and business intelligence systems.

What’s to prevent Google, eBay, Yahoo or AOL from reselling or even rebranding third-party SaaS and IT management services as part of a bundled solution for SMBs or single office/home office (SOHO) users?

By the same token, now that Dell is adding Google’s desktop search software to its preconfigured PCs, why wouldn’t it–or one of its competitors–also incorporate a set of SaaS and IT management services into their products to strengthen their functionality and improve their reliability?

The quickest way for one of the major PC/server vendors or Internet companies to pursue this strategy would be to align with Salesforce.com’s AppExchange. This would give them immediate access to over 250 applications, as well as the support of one of the most powerful and effective marketing companies in the IT/software industry.

While the AppExchange is primarily populated with business applications at this stage, I expect it will expand to include a variety of managed services, ranging from turnkey messaging to managed security, that will make it easier for consumers and SMBs to keep their PCs/servers up and running, while dramatically improving their functionality.

The hardware vendors and Internet companies that add preconfigured SaaS and IT management services to their PCs/servers and online services will reset the ‘playing field’ and gain a competitive advantage.