Cloud Hosting Article

Is cloud computing a trend or a fad? That depends on whom you ask. For early adopters and those who are enamored with the cost and efficiency benefits of the technology, cloud computing is clearly a trend. For IT managers concerned about risk—especially given Amazon and Sony’s recent breaches—it may look more like a fad.

During a TMCnet video interview at Cloud Expo 2011, Andy Land (News - Alert), UnboundID’s vice president of Marketing,  said that although security remains a barrier to entry, cloud computing has moved from fad to trend.

“There are too many benefits to the cloud not to use it,” Land stressed. “And, there are many things that can be put in the cloud effectively. But it’s important to stay out of the hype and stay in reality. What kills trends like this is overhype and not living up to expectations.”

He added, “Moving to the cloud is a risk for IT professionals. They take risk very seriously, as they should.” 

As more companies move to the cloud, they require secure ways to collect, store and use information about users. This is where UnboundID (News - Alert) comes in. The company offers a cloud identity database solution, which companies use to store profile “attributes” about users. AT&T, Verizon and Intuit (News - Alert) are some of UnboundID’s customers.

The technology can be used for any application that requires access to stored attributes about users, including contact details and location information.

UnboundID is useful not only for social networking companies and telcos, but also for software firms delivering software-as-a-service products, since this involves an over-the-internet billing relationship with customers.

Land said one of the major trends he sees is the quick rise of new companies (e.g. Rackspace (News - Alert)), or the reinvention of firms (e.g. Amazon), as major players in the marketplace. This is coupled with a lot of consolidation.

“AT&T and Verizon, for example, are buying cloud companies every day,” Land noted. “The telcos and the cloud guys are forming one grouping. There’s a rapid movement to get in on this cloud thing before it’s too late. “

Land acknowledge that some players in the cloud market, especially newer ones like Facebook (News - Alert), have a strong development heritage and are thus able to take open source products and build their own cloud identity database solutions.

“For companies whose core competency isn’t development, but that still need to provide an infrastructure for users, UnboundID is a strong option,” he said. 

For more discussion about cloud solutions and security, watch the full video interview with Land.