The learning curve for those who choose to learn PHP is simpler and faster (comparing with .NET and Java EE, the PHP alternatives). For a company that wants to train its programmers and provide them with the capabilities and skills to develop web based applications, choosing PHP is less risky and cheaper.
Development Process
Being a simple programming language, when dealing with web applications development the PHP programming language enables a simple and a fast development process. Usually, simpler and faster than Java EE and C#.
Software programmers’ salaries is a significant cost. Especially when dealing with technologies in which it is difficult to find good programmers. Due to the simple learning curve PHP has, unlike Java EE and .NET it is much simpler to find a PHP developer than a Java EE or a .NET one. For that reason, the common salary for a PHP developer is nearly half the common salary for a Java EE or a .NET developer. In addition, most of PHP development tools and deployment systems are available for free as open source products.
Platform Dependency
Unlike .NET, using PHP we are platform independent as with Java EE. PHP engines are available for most platforms and operating systems.
Open Source Community
PHP enjoys a big open source community that generates an enormous number of open source projects. Joomla, WordPress, SugarCRM and many others. Probably more than any other software programming language. Being a popular language, using PHP we can enjoy all benefits related with the usage of open source code projects and tools.
Hosting Services
Being a simple and easy software programming language, unlike Java EE we can find a huge number of hosting services companies that support PHP.
This post was extracted from a detailed article I have recently published at www.zuntel.com.