Reluctant SMB Market Left Behind?

A certain famous Beatle is letting go. According to CNET, Paul McCartney and MPL Communications, his own media company, has partnered with HP to archive his personal media library hosted by HP. McCartney’s library is supported by HP’s Converged Infrastructure solution, a system of storage, servers and networking, resting on a private cloud in HP’s datacenters. Though MPL Communications and McCartney may be a ringing celebrity endorsement for HP, other SMBs are not quick to jump on board with the public cloud. In a recent survey, the research firm In-Stat reported that 70% of the SMBs who are using cloud storage are coupling it with an on-site storage unit. Hence, they are not truly leveraging the cloud.

The innovator/laggards dichotomy is applicable here. Since cloud is still a relatively new concept, most firms are wary of the “bugs” – performance, security, control, etc. Thus, they want to wait until the technology is more mature. Reluctant SMBs are removing themselves from the innovators and early adopter category and placing themselves squarely in the position of being late majority or laggards.

One way to mitigate these worries (and to not get left behind) is to engage in a private cloud or a hybrid – a combination of a public and private cloud – to meet SMBs’ infrastructure needs. Nonetheless, the costs of a private cloud deployment can be outside an SMB’s budget. While public cloud has security and performance implications, private and hybrid clouds are equipped with financial barriers.

When will SMBs be ready to let go and migrate to a public cloud? Despite the reports, adoption may be sooner than expected. Cloud security providers are working around the clock to develop best in class solutions for prospects. Additionally, Intel’s unveiling of AppUp, a hybrid cloud solution aimed at SMBs, is an example of how major players are actively engaged in pushing SMBs to the cloud.

It’s just a matter of time before most firms will be ready to let go – like Paul did, of over one million personal photos, videos and music clips.

This article originated from http://wiredre.com which I recommend to any IT professional interested in the latest industry trends.

Chris Borowski