Cloud customers prioritizing flexible storage options

Cloud storage customers are becoming increasingly diverse as the advantages of the cloud catch on to a wide range of industries. The new market for cloud storage is filled with equally unique needs and more companies are turning to hybrid cloud solutions to meet security, capacity and availability considerations. The trend is so pervasive that it has even extended to tech companies overseas.

Cloud plus colocation
The surging market for cloud storage solutions is evident in the waves of wholesale data centers packaging their services for smaller clients and integrating cloud storage to supplement their primary racks. Data Center Knowledge reports that many small companies have turned to wholesale data centers to combine their clouds with dedicated physical storage. Wholesale data centers have also seen a rise in major clients requiring direct connection services to link their cloud and data center networks.

European tech companies are following the same trend, according to Datacenter Dynamics. The European wholesale cloud storage industry is expected to surge from $2.8 billion in revenue to $5.2 billion in revenue by 2018. Much of this increase in business will be driven by companies seeking hybrid storage solutions. The trend is also being encouraged by regional data laws that restrict connectivity and storage across borders. European firms are instead turning to space-efficient hybrid solutions through cloud providers in their own back yard. As a result, the implementation of remote console servers is expected to rise as well.

Hybrid without the hybrid
Companies seeking a mix of private and public cloud storage are another growing base of cloud customers, says Network World. Both Microsoft and Amazon have appealed to these customers with unique strategies. Microsoft offers Windows System Center, which allows users to construct a private cloud on company servers. This private cloud can then be easily connected to the Microsoft-owned Azure public cloud. Amazon instead provides on-site private cloud facilities with direct links to the company's Amazon Web Services cloud. Both methods provide the same service, a hybrid solution that is actually comprised of two linked clouds with varying degrees of accessibility.

The trend has shown as much momentum as the push for traditional hybrid cloud storage. A survey performed by Technology Business Research reveals that 20 percent of major data storage customers have shown interest in investing in hybrid clouds. The integration market for hybrid clouds is expected to reach $7 billion in revenue by the end of the year.

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