Cloud Computing Brings Challenge, Opportunity in 2009 - Commentary

The IT forecast for 2009 is decidedly cloudy. Cloud computing, fueled by software as a service, virtualization and managed services, will become a bigger part of the business of IT solution providers.

As the economy continues to stall, the appeal of pay-per-use IT services built around virtualization, managed services and hosted software will grow.

Companies large and small will become more and more dependent on cloud-based technology, eschewing servers within their networks in favor of applications hosted at outside data centers. This is already a fact of life at many small companies, and look for the practice to extend to businesses with hundreds, even thousands, of employees.

Cloud Computing Brings Challenge, Opportunity in 2009 - Commentary