TechWeekEurope Readers Prefer Private And Hybrid To Public Cloud

Just 15 percent of TechWeekEurope readers are interested in procuring public cloud services, according to the results of our latest poll.

Public cloud platforms allow businesses to save money on equipment and provide flexibility, but for many firms in regulated industries it is out of the question and for others it might be more cost effective to deliver data and applications through private infrastructure in the log-run.

Indeed, 55 percent of respondents said they were looking at a private cloud solution, valuing the customisation, control and security such an option would bring. Recent events like the suspension of the EU-US ‘Safe Harbour’ data sharing agreement would strengthen this position.

Cloud poll

But 30 percent say they are interested in hybrid cloud, which combines the benefits of both private and public services. For example, a firm can use the scalable benefits of a service like Azure or Amazon Web Services (AWS), while keeping sensitive data closer to home.

For many businesses, the question of whether to move the cloud is rapidly becoming ‘when’, not ‘if’ and public and hybrid cloud services could become more appealing as providers add more features to their services. For example, VMware is adding features to its hybrid platform all the time, while Amazon is opening new data centres to let customers choose where their data is stored.

But for now, it appears as though private is a key component of your strategy.

In our next poll, we want to know whether you are using M2M applications or connected devices in the home or at work, let us know by voting.

This poll is sponsored by Aruba.IT, provider of public cloud solutions to UK businesses through Aruba Cloud.

How much do you know about the cloud? Try our quiz!