Product lifecycle
The Product Lifecycle in software and technology development consists of several key stages, from initial ideation to eventual retirement. Below are the typical phases, including Alpha, Beta, LA (Limited Availability), and GA (General Availability), along with any other relevant ones.
1. Ideation & Planning
- This is the pre-development stage where ideas are generated, market research is conducted, and feasibility is assessed.
- Key outputs: Business case, product roadmap, initial requirements.
2. Development (Pre-Alpha / Internal Builds)
- The engineering team starts developing the product, often through iterative or agile methodologies.
- The software is not yet available to external users and is usually tested internally by developers.
3. Alpha (Early Testing Phase)
- Purpose: Internal or limited external testing of the core functionalities.
- Audience: Usually internal teams, selected partners, or early adopters.
- Characteristics:
- Features are incomplete or experimental.
- Stability is not guaranteed.
- Focus on identifying critical bugs and gathering early feedback.
4. Beta (Public Testing Phase)
- Purpose: Broader user testing with external stakeholders, customers, and community members.
- Audience: Select external users (closed beta) or a wider audience (open beta).
- Characteristics:
- Most features are implemented but may need optimization.
- Focus on usability, performance, and user feedback.
- Bugs are expected but should not be critical blockers.
5. Release Candidate (RC) / Limited Availability (LA)
- Purpose: A near-final version released to a controlled subset of customers.
- Audience: Select customers under special agreements.
- Characteristics:
- Functionally complete with final bug fixes in progress.
- Used to validate production readiness.
- Often part of a soft launch before full-scale release.
6. General Availability (GA) / Full Release
- Purpose: The official, stable release for the general market.
- Audience: All customers, unless restricted by licensing or geography.
- Characteristics:
- Fully supported by the company.
- Regular updates and patches provided.
- Available for purchase or full use.
7. Growth & Maturity
- The product gains adoption, revenue, and possibly additional feature updates.
- This phase includes major updates, maintenance, and security patches.
- Marketing and customer support efforts are at their peak.
8. Decline & End of Life (EOL) / End of Support (EOS)
- EOL: The product is no longer actively developed, though some existing customers may still be using it.
- EOS: No further updates, patches, or customer support.
- Replacement: Customers are encouraged to upgrade or migrate to a newer version or alternative.
Special Terms & Variants
- Soft Launch – A phased release to a small segment before full GA.
- Preview / Early Access – Limited release to test features before Alpha or Beta.
- Sunsetting – A transition period where a product is gradually phased out before reaching EOL.