Projecting 28 percent annual growth in cloud computing, IBM this week opened its 10th laboratory focused on developing products and services for global Web 2.0, collaboration and mail services. The facility will support IBM's LotusLive division, which it says has gained 18 million users in its first year and will be geared toward clouds for government and companies. The monthly cost for companies is $3 per user.
Cloud computing provides hosted services, such as e-mail, instant messaging, and calendar-scheduling to a limited number of people, such as employees of a corporation. Users have access to business applications, while software and data  are stored on servers. The LotusLive suite includes Connections, Engage, Meetings, Events and Notes.
Clouds Rising
An increasing number of companies are exploring the cost savings of cloud computing, with some big corporations forming their own clouds and many others outsourcing, The Wall Street Journal reported Thursday.
IBM estimates that the annual growth in cloud computing will bring it from a $48 billion industry in 2008 to one producing $126 billion in 2012. The research firm IDC projects that by 2012 cloud computing will represent nine percent of revenues in five key market segments, capturing 25 percent of the growth in information technology spending, and as much as a third of growth the following year.
IBM's new facility in Hong Kong will use its existing China Development Laboratory, its largest software lab, with 5,000 developers.
"As the first cloud-computing laboratory in Hong Kong to serve as a global resource for cloud-based collaboration services, the laboratory marks a milestone for IBM and for the information-technology industry in Hong Kong," said Dominic Tong, general manager of IBM China/Hong Kong Limited.
IBM is also boasting of the resources available from its acquisition last year of Outblaze Limited, also based in Hong Kong, whose work has been incorporated into the Lotus collaboration services.
Tong said the new facility demonstrates Hong Kong's place as a global hub for information technology. The new lab is in addition to one planned for Auckland, New Zealand.
Security Risks
A central focus for the IBM cloud teams is security , a major concern for companies who trust vendors to manage their data. One of the main advantages of cloud computing, the ability to take advantage of large-capacity data storage without investing in the necessary hardware, is also one of the biggest liabilities.
Cloud clients often don't know where in the world their data is being stored. In a 2008 report, Gartner recommended that companies vet cloud-computing vendors through third parties to ensure their integrity.
SecurityInfoWatch blogger Natalia Kosk writes that companies who utilize clouds have to compare the benefits to the risks. "As more folks continue to transition their data via cloud computing, the providers and IT folks need to be ready to face whatever challenges come their way," she writes, "even if that means additional required training on issues they have yet to deal with, such as security threats on the network ."
Anonymous:
Posted: 2010-03-30 @ 10:19am PT
Interesting stuff. I recently came across an article that addresses some of the security issues the public cloud has and reviews IBM’s CloudBurst, which allows users to create their own private clouds easily and securely. I think the cloud is where IT is heading, even despite security issues.
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