As predicted by many, cloud computing will continue to grow substantially. There is no sign of slowing down, despite some try to deny the facts.
This week cloud business news roundup features the cloud’s tipping point, as written by Ray DePena in Sys-Con.com. DePena explains that although some IT business owners tend to dismiss the fact that cloud computing is “taking over” the IT world, sooner or later they will need to join the cloud bandwagon – or left in the dust – literally.
How so? At certain point (DePena called it the cloud’s tipping point, a term coined by Malcolm Gladwell referring to a particular event that will trigger many other events) everybody will leave legacy IT systems and go cloud – rapidly. The reasons for business customers are apparent: Cloud computing gives them the capability to be more productive at huge savings on their IT budget, not mentioning an improvement in their ability to take on new challenges and innovations.
Business IT vendors that don’t have business plans involving the cloud will be left with their old IT systems with nobody want to buy them anymore. The end is predictable: Your business, R.I.P.
There will be no more installed software, as customers and developers are focusing to do everything in the cloud. DePena suggest that within 5-8 years, quite possibly 25-40 percent small software vendors won’t ship shrink wrapped software products anymore. So, are you ready to go cloud?
Why cloud-based IT vendors will reap what they sow – a case study and some stats…
No wonder big companies are investing heavily in the cloud; the market is there, and the demand is huge. Smaller companies are also enjoying the benefit of it.
A cover story on CRN, titled Rise Of The Cloud Provider shares what David Rice, the co-founder of TrueCloud, a cloud-based enterprise resource planning (ERP) provider for small and medium businesses, think about the prospects of cloud computing for business.
Rice says, “There is no shortage of customers.” In today’s uncertain economy, Rice’s TrueCloud is seeing triple-digit growth – a growth rate that Rice predicts will continue at least through 2015 as more customers are becoming more knowledgeable about what the cloud can offer them. Let the numbers do the talking: TrueCloud’s revenue is up by 150 percent year over year and clients interested in cloud solutions are up by 400 percent. Lucrative, indeed.
Here is a survey that back Rice testimonial on cloud computing trends for business: According to InspiresMe.co.uk, OnApp’s survey on global cloud providers reveals that 49 percent cloud providers expect that small businesses will take cloud services in the next 12 months. 27 percent of cloud providers also expect that their primary customers are from the enterprise sector, while 18 percent of them view individual customers as their main target market to make it big.
So, what about the prospects themselves? Here’s how much small business owners want to learn about business cloud solutions; as reported by MSPMentor, SkillSoft has released the 100 most popular e-books for business and IT professionals during Q2 2011. The result: 4 out of 10 most popular IT analyst reports and 14 out of 100 overall e-book titles were cloud-related.
So, will you put cloud computing in your business plan for growth?
