Cloud Wars

The way we think about developing applications for the Web or Mobile is changing rapidly. Traditional IT Development is being put to the test, all thanks to the raging cloud wars between Google, Amazon & Microsoft’s Azure.

And No, this is not a new Sci-Fi Trilogy coming to a cinema near you, but the ongoing Cloud War is a war on Price, Infrastructure, Branding, Storage and who has the biggest “Server” of the 3.

For anyone not up to speed, the easiest explanation, in my opinion, for Cloud Computing, is to define it as outsourcing your technology hardware to a 3rd party and accessing it via a network connection.

There has been a major swing from On-Premise Infrastructure (Servers in the office) to Cloud Computing over recent years, and this is for good reason. Those who have adopted cloud platforms have seen a 70% reduction in capital and operational costs, as well the rise in security threats means that your applications and data need to have the best security measures in place to prevent attacks, and, as a result, 2/3 CEO’s are now focusing on digital transformation within their business.

The biggest player in this field right now is Amazon Web Services (AWS). Developers and organisations alike have been using AWS to develop Enterprise Applications, Mobile Apps, Storage Solutions & Backup solutions since it began back in 2006. They provide you with Servers, Databases and all the computing infrastructure you need for hourly rates. Which has been fantastic for people looking to reduce capital expenditure on new servers and upgrading out of date equipment. However, there is a minimum sign in period and this can be costly for start-ups and new applications.

I know Microsoft have pumped a lot of money into their Azure platform, however as of lately their competitors, in Google, have rapidly closed the gap on this domination of the Mobile app world. They launched in February 2010, and are looking to take over the mobile app development market. They are also spending a lot of money on their Xamarin Development Environment, as they try to become the industry leader for a fully rounded solution. However, one of the downsides is making you buy into Microsoft Products, and these are very difficult to move away from, so once you start on their platform, you will be there for most (If not all) of your applications life.

The youngest in the Cloud Platform Solutions is Google Cloud platform. Released to general availability of the public in December 2013, some would say Google have been playing catch up with the other 2 industry leaders. But not a lot of people know that while these other platforms were emerging, Google was busy running 40% of the worlds internet.

Due to this market share of the entire internet, over the years, Google have developed some amazing technologies and solutions to enable them to cope with the volume of people & data. From Google Analytics, their Machine Learning, to the incredible amount of storage space they need to keep everything they really have almost perfected their own Infrastructure. So, between the years of 2013 when they launched the Cloud Platform, and 2015, Google Invested $30Billion to upgrade their entire infrastructure. Their aim was to create a fully open source cloud, with per minute billing and no minimum signup contracts. An Industry First. You pay for what you need and if you have to pull the plug – Do so with no penalties or risks. And if you want to move to your own Infrastructure someday like Facebook, it’s a lift and shift manoeuvre, not tied into any licence fees.

What Google Cloud Platform have also done, is make available the exact same technology that they use to run their organisation, to every developer and organisation out there. And this has attracted some of the big players such as Snapchat, Coca-Cola, Spotify, Home Depot and many more.

With over 101 points of presence around the world, adding almost 1 new region a month and offering over 20 services that they have used to run the internet for years, I don’t think Google has been playing catch-up:

They have been waiting, watching, saw their enemy’s weaknesses and went straight for the kill from the start.

And, as you can tell, I am in no way biased……… but IMAC IT Solutions have been accredited as a Google Cloud Platform Technology partner, meaning the solutions we have developed have been looked at by Google, and essentially been given the thumbs up as being at an excellent standard to run on their platform. So, any questions you have on cloud computing, mobile app development or bespoke application development please do not hesitate to get in contact.

ryan@imacit.com

02879659499