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12.5.2011

There was a time when any company that was rooted in cloud technology was just the kind of business an investor might avoid, but not anymore. In fact, the CEO of cloud technology-based start-up GramercyOne says that while three years ago being a cloud-based business made sales more difficult, these days it is almost a requirement. And he should know what he is talking about as his company is one of three New York cloud technology-based businesses to complete recent rounds of venture capital funding.

These companies have shown an ability to demonstrate how low costs to startups make them an attractive alternative to a traditional approach for new business. That is why these technology companies have made the latest funding round particularly successful. Three companies that saw funding this past month are:

1. GramercyOne – A software business that helps retail merchants track and control special promotions.
2. ErPly – A software provider for point-of-sale inventory management that uses cloud technology that frees merchants from needing constant internet access.
3. Profitably – Business analysis software for startups to help with forecasting cash flow and more.

For a look at the type and amount of funding, along with more information on what VCs are looking for in a cloud technology-based startup, read more at NYCovergence.

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12.2.2011

The cloud has arrived at the Olympics as London prepares for the 2012 Summer Olympics with the help of cloud-based communications through British Telecom. It will be using the cloud server communications network to connect 25 sites as part of a converged voice, video and data network that will run throughout the summer games.

With 25 sites and 94 venues converging on 16,500 portable devices the 2012 London Summer Olympic Games will be the most connected games held ever. For a closer look at the cloud servers technology that will be offered and how this will provide flexible coverage for all participants in the games, see the full story here.

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12.2.2011

E-Passport Industry and The Cloud

At a seminar on border security in Singapore this week a presentation was made about how the coming growth of cloud technology will impact the development and direction of e-passports and related border security developments. The talk illustrated the room for new developments in this field that will use cloud-based technologies as tools for law enforcement.

The new developments regarding the securing of online identities and the integration of cloud-based technologies for border securities around the globe was just one aspect the conference considered in the discussion. For a more in-depth look at how the growth of disruptive technologies in the IT sector will continue to impact e-passport and border security procedures, read more.

What to Watch for in 2012 in the Cloud

Forbes asked ScienceLogic CTO Antonio Piraino to talk about what businesses should be watching for in the coming year when it comes to cloud technology developments. In this article he talks about the coming cloud wars as the industry matures as well as the very real possibility of a huge cyber-attack, the arrival of cloud technology as an essential good for business instead of a low-price add-on and the growth of using cloud technology for operational business intelligence decisions.

He also sees some fresh movement regarding acquisitions and how they will differ from traditional paths of industry growth, the maturation of cloud management and the increased attention to regulation as the need for energy to support data centers increases and the blurring of international borders with cross-country hosting relationships continues to grow. For more details on how Piraino sees the maturing of cloud computing impact business in the coming year, read more.

Environmental Businesses Gain Cloud Tool

One of the announcements to come out of the climate change conference in Durban was the launch of a new tool for many environmental businesses and agencies across the globe to collaborate on mapping environmental parameters. The cloud initiative is called Eye on Earth and will be an online community where information, data and news from a wide variety of locations is shared and collaborated on together.

A good example is one of the first projects to be launched on the cloud community: NoiseWatch. This is a web service that measures noise levels in 164 cities across Europe. Another possible use is for organizations who are involved in environmental data. The site will store and share map-based data and provide the translation of complex scientific information across the globe. The possibilities for a cloud-based tool of this scope to link ecological businesses around the globe are endless. For a more comprehensive look at the various services, read more.

Cisco Reassesses Cloud Computing Traffic Growth

With the release of its very first cloud traffic growth assessment, The Cisco Global Cloud Index, Cisco has increased previous discussion numbers to show that growth from 2010 to 2015 will jump twelve-fold. The report looks at data center traffic, of which cloud computing is by far the fastest growing element. The report highlights that the biggest area of growth will come not from the end users of cloud computing but from the traffic within the data centers for such activities as backup and replication. They estimate that only 17% of all traffic actually originates from end users.

With the majority of the traffic generated within the data centers, as support activities for that end user client base, it is easy to see why the expected growth in the use of cloud computing will cause traffic flow to increase substantially. They predict it will grow from 1.2ZB in 2010 to 4.8ZB by 2015. For more on how the Cisco Global Cloud Index sees this growth unfolding and a link to the actual report, read more.

Cloud Computing and The Patriot Act

Cloud hosting in the US has run up against a wall when it comes to hosting companies from other countries, and that is the Patriot Act. While it does not prevent anyone from choosing a US based host for their services, some foreign companies, and governments, are looking twice at using a US based cloud host.

This latest article looks at what the federal government is doing to clarify these misconceptions and make it easier for US businesses looking to expand into Europe and Asia via the cloud. The Obama administration is currently in a series of talks with various countries to disabuse the conception that data held in US-based data centers would be required to hand over data to US authorities. For a clarification of the Patriot Act and more on what the government is doing to clarify misconceptions on its role, read more.

A Look Back at the Cloud Technology Trends for 2011

VentureBeat is one of the leading technology investment sites and host to the just completed CloudBeat conference. It recently asked Luis Robles, a venture capitalist at Sierra Ventures to look back at the past year and give his take on what the biggest trends were for cloud computing in 2011. In his comments he looked at the problems Amazon was dealt this year, and their recovery from the big crash, how alternatives to VMware grew as well as private clouds, how the maturation of cloud apps for productivity took off and how Big Data has grown from simply sheer size to include complexity as part of the equation.

All of these trends come with growing pains and more than a few errors in judgment. And while they are just the tip of the iceberg for the cloud computing industry, they point to a direction for startups and SMBs that many others have echoed. For a look at how each of these trends has progressed in the last year, as well as where Robles feels they are heading in the coming few years, read more.

12.1.2011

For the healthcare industry, the movement to cloud computing is a huge boon as the industry continues to grow and the need to manage enormous amounts of data grows with it. Healthcare IT News recently took a look at the many opportunities to implement cloud computing technology for the healthcare industry.

Storage and management of data is one of the primary areas that the healthcare industry sees a growing need for cloud computing technology. The types of healthcare services as well as the number of technicians working in the field make virtual servers for data storage and retrieval almost a necessity to stay on top of the rapid growth in the industry.

This article takes a look at the following areas that might help any healthcare IT department make a decision about how and when to deploy cloud computing when considering the role of virtual servers for their business:

• Reviewing the Challenges and Opportunities for Cloud Computing in Healthcare
• Finding the right role for Cloud Computing in Healthcare
• Evaluating the Risks for Healthcare Cloud Servers
• A Look at Private vs Public Clouds for Healthcare

For a look at the future of cloud servers in the Healthcare Industry and how IT can be a part of that decision, read more at Healthcare IT News.

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