Cloud computing offers speedy path to business innovation, report says

Wednesday, 25 August 2010 07:34

Cloud computing isn't just a way to try to save money on IT infrastructure; it's a way to accelerate business agility and innovation, according to a recent report by PricewaterhouseCoopers.

Traditional, rigid IT infrastructures get in the way of innovation because they take months or years to deploy when a business decides to try something new, the report said, whereas on-demand computing services can be set up in days.

"Often the costs and time required to test a new product or service, or try a new way of engaging customers, are so prohibitive, they discourage companies from even trying them," according to the PwC report. "But cloud computing offers an inexpensive and flexible way to deploy the infrastructure as needed to test ideas."

For example, the report said that 3M Corp. is using Microsoft Corp.'s Azure cloud technology to quickly analyze new designs for consumer products, and McKesson Corp. is using SAS Institute Inc.'s "analytics cloud" to study marketing data.

However, the report acknowledged that cloud computing raises security issues, as well as regulatory compliance, tax and financial accounting considerations.

Read more about Cloud Computing in Computerworld's Cloud Computing Topic Center.