Assets in Software Engineering: What are they after all?

During the development and maintenance of software-intensive products or services, we depend on various assets. These assets are important to the feasibility of the project and influence product's final quality. However, despite their central role in the software development process, little thought is yet invested into what assets eventually are, often resulting in many terms and underlying concepts being mixed and used inconsistently. A precise terminology of assets and related concepts, such as asset degradation, are crucial for setting up a new generation of cost-effective software engineering practices. In this position paper, we critically reflect upon the resulting notion of assets in software engineering. As a starting point, we define the terminology and concepts of assets and extend the reasoning behind them. We explore assets' characteristics such as value and persistence. We discuss what asset degradation is, its various types and the implications that asset degradation might bring for the planning, realisation, and evolution of software-intensive products and services over time. With our work, we aspire to contribute to a more standardised definition of assets in software engineering and foster research endeavours and their practical dissemination in a common, more unified direction.