Cloud computing to be in vogue by' 10

Insufficient bandwidth is the impediment to online computing.

Cloud computing, the latest buzzword in the information technology (IT) industry, will take another two years to get a foothold in India. Insufficient bandwidth, congested networks, concerns about virtualisation and security issues are likely to delay its adoption.

Cloud computing is internet-based development and use of computer applications. The applications are available in the ‘cloud’ (a metaphor for the internet). An instance of cloud computing is Google Apps which provides business applications online and can be accessed using a web browser. Cloud computing reduces technology expenses for companies as applications can be rented online by paying a subscription fee.

“The biggest challenge is the availability of sufficient network bandwidth in the Asia-Pacific region, including India. Cloud computing will need sufficient bandwidth if computing requirements are pushed to the network,” Lee Ann Tan, senior general manager, (Securities and Storage), Datacraft Asia, said.

Analysts say the average bandwidth in India is 256 Kbps. Network optimisation or a more efficient use of the available network would be the key for cloud computing to catch up, said Lee.

“Network optimisation is key for a network to be effective in delivering services to the user. This is especially true for Asia where not every place has broadband connectivity,” he added.

Virtualisation, however, is likely to be the critical issue that the technology will have to take on before it is widely accepted. Virtualisation is renting of computing capabilities from host providers.

“The penetration of virtualisation in India and the Asia-Pacific region ranges between 3 per cent and 15 per cent. Adoption largely depends on the maturity of the IT firm,” Lee added.

Salesforce.com Director Peter Coffee said: "We are aware that sometimes, when businesses consider moving to the cloud, they are concerned with the security aspect. Clients can also be wary of storing data on a service provider's systems. We welcome customer scrutiny, because we're committed towards ensuring that customer data is secured with world-class technology and the highest standard of administrative practices. Financial service leaders like Merrill Lynch and Citibank use our services and the same level of security is provided to the almost 52,000 other clients using salesforce applications."

“In the short-term, enterprises will remain cautious in adopting cloud computing services in critical areas due to concerns about the maturity of offering, security issues, the extent of control over operations, customisation and integration needs,” a Wipro spokesperson said.

Cloud services offer significant reduction in provisioning time, a reduction in infrastructure costs, simplification of the way data is stored, a reduction in application management costs and flexible storage capacity.