Service Oriented Architecture (SOA) is currently considered as one of the most advanced means to realize quickly modular and flexible applications. A key concern for flexibility in SOA is the variability. Several works on variability were conducted. However, few studies have proposed classifications on the variability in the composition of web services. In this article, we propose an original approach to compare the management of variability in web services composition. This approach is based on a framework that considers the variability according to four dimensions namely the form, content, purpose, and life cycle. Each dimension is defined by a set of attributes that characterizes a particular facet of the variability.

Service Oriented Architecture (SOA) is currently considered as one of the most advanced means to realize quickly modular and flexible applications. A key concern for flexibility in SOA is the variability. Several works on variability were conducted. However, few studies have proposed classifications on the variability in the composition of web services. In this article, we propose an original approach to compare the management of variability in web services composition. This approach is based on a framework that considers the variability according to four dimensions namely the form, content, purpose, and life cycle. Each dimension is defined by a set of attributes that characterizes a particular facet of the variability.