Tech Lover 9

Cloud Computing has become one of the most popular topics of conversation among the IT community.  There have been countless polls and surveys conducted to find out more understanding on the market information and industry trends.  Here are some of the most interesting statisti
cs from the past few months.

1. $150 Billion: The size of the Cloud Computing Market by 2013.
This amount comes from a study done by Gartner.  The number may seem like a high estimate to some, but it is consistent (or even low) compared to other estimates.  Merrill Lynch’s research predicts the cloud computing market to be worth $160 Billion by the same year.  With many businesses just recently starting to feel the pressure to move into cloud computing, it is not surprising that experts are predicting the market to grow at such a high rate in the next few years.

2. $750 Million: The Amount Amazon.com’s AWS expects to earn in 2011.

Amazon’s Web Services has provided businesses with an infrastructure web services platform based in the cloud.  Their offering, which started in 2006, hit revenue of around $500 Million in 2010. This estimate is based on research done by analysts at UBS, a financial analyst firm based in Switzerland.  Amazon’s web services continue to dominate the Infrastructure as a Service market in users and revenue; but with new and innovative cloud providers entering the market, could a change be in the near future?

3. 7/10: Companies using cloud services that will move new applications to the cloud.
This statistic is based on a study done by Mimecast, a company that offers Software as a Service enterprise e-mail.  Many companies start their transition into the cloud with a small “trial;” testing it with only some of their infrastructure, applications, or data.  A large portion of the industry growth in the next few years will be from companies who are happy with their “trial period” and are ready to further transition their business into the cloud.

4. 54%: Amount of respondents citing Security as their top concern for transitioning to the cloud (e.g. cloud accounting software).

This number is according to a recent survey conducted by LinkedIn with 7052 respondents.  Security is a top deterrent for many businesses looking to use cloud computing in their company.   This is especially true for industries that use and store sensitive data such as the financial and healthcare industries.  A few years ago, these types of companies would never think using the cloud would be a safe method to store all their data.  However, cloud providers are now able to become compliant with numerous security regulations, such as HIPAA, ISO 27001, and PCI DSS.  This allows these types of industries with highly secure data to feel confident their data is safe when using cloud computing.  In fact, in a study conducted by Mimecast, 57% of respondents actually felt that cloud computing increased their security when compared to traditional methods for computing and data back up.

5. 60%: Server workloads that will be virtualized by 2014.

This prediction comes from research conducted by Gartner.  This is a staggering percentage, especially when compared to 2008, when only 12% of server workloads were virtualized.  A business virtualizing their workload into the clouds has multiple benefits.  First, they are saving themselves the trouble of having to purchase and store physical hardware, which is costly and inefficient.  Second, companies can reduce their carbon footprint by outsourcing their workload to data centers.  Many new data centers have state-of-the-art equipment and procedures to reduce consumption.  This is particularly vital when considering all the energy intensive processes a data center conducts, such as cooling down servers and keeping them up and running 24/7.  Therefore, using green data centers is more environmentally friendly than housing your own servers.

Cloud computing has been around for more than a decade, but I think that 2011 really marks the year it is becoming widely adopted.  Consumers and businesses alike are realizing that the cloud offers a variety of solutions to problems that plague computer-users daily.  Small and medium sized businesses are the largest growing segment in cloud computing.  Companies that have not switched yet are feeling pressure to do so, and those who have already are seeing the benefits.  With the year 2012 on the horizon, I wonder what new trends and innovations the cloud computing industry will bring?