Let’s face it, 2017 is all but over.
When people look back on this period in history, cloud computing will certainly stand out as one of those innovations that changed society in a highly significant way – like Henry Ford’s Model T of the early 1900s and the rise of Microsoft in the ‘70s.
With cloud computing being in its infancy, one can easily deduce that there’s much more to come from this revolutionary technology – and the experts would agree.
So, let’s take a look at a few cloud computing predictions for 2018 and beyond, as well as how these improvements could benefit both the private and business sectors of Southern Africa…
Growth of Cloud Services
Software as a Service (SaaS) is the way in which cloud computing has enabled software development firms to allow access to their software, such as business reporting and client relations management (CRM) platforms, without the client having to spend thousands of Rands on the software itself.
Cloud computing has made the above possible, however at this point in time businesses are still figuring out the consumer market applications of SaaS. Experts predict that we’ll see more SaaS applications in this marketplace, as well as more SaaS solutions improving the day-to-day processes of businesses the world over.
Improved Cloud Storage Capacity
With cloud services becoming more and more essential for today’s businesses to keep up with the pack, service providers will be opening up and activating more data centres across the planet.
The more businesses and individuals using cloud computing services, the more storage space is required to host and manage the data. Currently, data storage centres across the world have an estimated storage capacity of 370 exabytes.
What’s an exabyte you ask? It’s 1,024 petabytes. What’s a petabyte? It’s 1,024 terabytes! Experts predict that, because of cloud computing’s reliance on large data servers for storage, we’ll have a global data storage capacity of around 1.1 zetabytes, which amounts to well over 1,100 exabytes!
The Rise of 5G Connectivity
Do you know what 3G is? If you answered ‘cell phone internet’, you’re about 10% correct! 3G, 4G, and what will be 5G in 2018 are global telecommunications standards. The ‘G’ stands for generation, as in 1G was the first generation of telecommunication networks, 2G was the second, and so on.
This move into the fifth generation of telecommunication will essentially allow for seamless cloud computing via mobile phones, opening a massive golden door for cloud computing specialists around the globe.
5G is expected to not only be MUCH faster than our current telecommunications and internet connectivity on smart phones, but 5G will pave the way for an expansion of the Internet of Things (IoT) which will see more and more everyday items connected to the internet.
More Business Cloud Integration
Still not convinced that cloud computing is fast becoming a business essential? This article on The Business Benefits of Cloud Computing sheds light on just how a company can benefit from utilising cloud computing services.
Experts predict that more and more business operations are set to be managed via the cloud for convenience and maximum resource utilisation, and that as this occurs – more business owners will realise the necessity of cloud computing in the modern corporate world.
At Stratus IT, we take great pleasure in helping our clients improve their company productivity and streamline their information technology through our bespoke cloud computing service offering. Click here to contact us for more information on cloud computing!
