AMMAN - IT experts on Wednesday said businesses in several sectors can reduce their IT-related costs and become more efficient by relying on cloud computing.
"Cloud computing enables businesses to pay for what they use. It helps them predict and lower costs and pay less for maintenance of equipment," Michel Diab, Business, marketing and operations director for Microsoft North Africa, Eastern Mediterranean and Pakistan (NEPA), said Wednesday during the Microsoft Open Door 2010.
Cloud computing, which is Internet-based computing whereby shared resources are provided on demand, entails having lower technology-based capital expenditures.
During the event, attended by over 1, 000 local IT professionals and experts, Diab said citing studies by Gartner by the year 2012, about 80 per cent of Fortune 1000 enterprise will use some of cloud computing services.
He added that 20 per cent of businesses around the world will have no IT assets by the year 2012, according to Gartner, which is a US-based information technology research and advisory company created in 1979.
In a survey by Gartner earlier this year, cloud computing was ranked number 2 as the top technology priority immediately after virtualisation. In 2009, cloud computing ranked 16th, according to Gartner.
"Cloud computing enables companies to be efficient, grow and make more money. They can learn quicker, decide quicker and take actions quicker," he said, adding that connectivity is a problem facing the spread of cloud computing.
In the Middle East, Diab said there are no figures about the use of cloud computing, however, he said there is a potential in the future.
"Connectivity in the Middle East is growing and this is important. The more there is connectivity, the more there is use of cloud computing. People use cloud computing everyday without realising as using hotmail, MSN is cloud computing," he told The Jordan Times Wednesday.
In a session yesterday, Ihsan Anabtawi, information worker business group lead at Microsoft North Africa, Eastern Mediterranean and Pakistan, said about 70 per cent of IT budgets are spent on maintenance of equipment, highlighting the importance of cloud computing.
The two day event is an opportunity for the local ICT community to interact, discuss and experience the very latest developments and technologies impacting the ICT industry in Jordan and around the world, Microsoft said in a statement Wednesday.
The first day of the interactive and technology-rich event included presentations from key technology experts from Microsoft Corporation and the region, as well as recognised local industry experts who presented various sessions on a wide range of topics.
The sessions were divided into three tracks for IT professionals, Developers and Technical Managers, and the topics covered included Cloud Computing, Virtualisation, Windows 7, Internet Explorer 9, Exchange 2010, Microsoft Lync 2010, Microsoft Office 2010 for IT Professionals, SharePoint 2010, Microsoft Dynamics CRM and ERP, as well as Microsoft Dynamics AX.
The Microsoft Open Door 2010 also provided participants with an opportunity to experience some of the more fun technologies that the software giant has developed including the much talked about Kinect for Xbox 360, as well as the slick, streamlined and recently launched Windows Phone 7, which has been positively received by consumers throughout the world and is being recognised as the Windows mobile for the next generation, the statement added.
© Jordan Times 2010
