Cloud Communications Is "Logical Step" For Businesses

By Ally Orlando, contributing writer

Most businesses will use cloud computing resources for communications in the next two years, the fourth annual Future of Cloud Computing Survey finds. Because of this growth, vendors and service providers could see increased and sustained revenue.

CoreDial, a cloud communications software and services provider, collaborated with 71 other organizations to release the study. A broad examination of the cloud technology revolution across 1,358 respondents, the survey analyzed inhibitors and drivers behind cloud adoption to separate the hype from genuine industry trends and real world cases.

“The survey confirms what we are seeing in the market and hearing from our partners. Moving communications services into the cloud is a logical step for most enterprises,” says CoreDial CEO Alan Rihm.

“With four years of data, we’re now really beginning to see some interesting trends, such as the five-fold increase in SaaS adoption to 74 percent and the nearly six-fold increase in PaaS adoption to 41 percent,” says Michael Skok, founder of the Future of Cloud program and general partner of North Bridge Venture Partners.

Drivers

Among respondents, the most common driver for cloud computing adoption is the ability to scale their operations (54 percent). Coming in second and third were cost (53 percent) and agility (52 percent). These three drivers have remained consistent over the past few years. However, one change is that businesses are moving to the cloud to trade capital expenditures for operational expenditures, especially larger ones with more than 5,000 employees.

Adoption

Businesses are taking a strategic approach to cloud adoption. Nearly half of respondents (49 percent) say they are using cloud computing to fuel revenue generation or new product creation.

SaaS adoption has proliferated. This year’s survey reports 74 percent adoption — up from 11 percent in 2011. Skok explains that although this shift is largely a transition of existing apps adopted as SaaS solutions, it signifies that the first cloud front has “rolled in confidently.”

“Cloud is now integral to business with 45 percent of executives saying they currently or plan to run their business in the cloud,” Skok notes.

Future

According to Rihm, CoreDial expects to see an upswing in cloud communications adoption over the next one to two years. “The cloud offers a cost-effective, efficient and future-proof way to serve their communications needs,” says Rihm.

He adds that the long-term opportunities that these resources provide are only the beginning of what will be sustained revenue for service providers. And based on the growth reported in the survey, Skok believes the market will see the birth of new cloud-native applications, providing greater value creation in the second cloud front.