The Bright Future of Cloud Computing and Storage

June 25, 2015

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June 25, 2015 – Welcome back Susan Finch who has twice before contributed an article to 21st Century Tech Blog. Susan is a freelance writer with experience in content marketing and blogging. She has contributed over ten years numerous articles in guidebooks, magazines, iPhone apps, online publications and more. You can find her at BySusanFinch.com.

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Information technology research and advisory firm Gartner predicts that by 2016, roughly 48 million applications will be available on the cloud. Meanwhile, cloud computing management firm RightScale reported 93% of organizations surveyed are already running applications and experimenting with infrastructure-as-a-service in the cloud. Enterprises and individuals alike are rapidly adopting to the cloud and changing the landscape of how we do business and store our information. Soon relying on hardware and drives will become a thing of the past. Here is what the future of cloud computing and storage has in store for us as the industry continues to evolve.

An Increase in Hybrid Multi-Clouds

Businesses have traditionally used private clouds to run applications and house their digital information. This can prove costly both in terms of equipment used and IT staff needed to maintain it. We’ll see an increasing amount of enterprises switch to hybrid clouds, combining both private and public until the latter becomes the industry standard. Businesses can use multi clouds to efficiently scale up as their needs grows; keeping the process cost effective and fluid.

A Decrease in Computing Hardware

Computers like the Chromebook [Editor’s note: I have one and it is fantastic] already rely on cloud-only applications to stay up and running. Word processing is done in the cloud with Google Docs or Microsoft Word Online. More services from video editing to project management all offer cloud-based applications instead of downloadable apps. With the rise of cloud computing, the need for hardware and related computer processing will fade. Instead, the computing process will happen in the cloud without the need to manipulate hardware to keep businesses up and running.

New Advances in Video

Instead of relying on third parties to help host content, companies can run their own on-demand video and streaming needs on the cloud. Live video has already steadily grown in popularity with the ability to watch sports and shows in real time. More online media channels and services like Amazon Prime instant video will continue to crowd the marketplace. While major networks already offer some streaming video, they’ll no longer be the king of television content as more players democratize the market.

A Spike in Demand for Better Cloud Security

Security has always been an issue for weary cloud converters who fear their personal information and customer data will be compromised. While public cloud computing can reduce costs and streamline efficiency, a business has less control over it. Cloud security will need to evolve along with cloud computing and storage to keep up with the sensitive demands of both company and individual cloud use. Encrypted passwords will need to grow stronger and evolve to deter hackers and lock down vulnerabilities. Identity theft protection services like LifeLock will only grow in demand and popularity and become the norm when working with the cloud.

More Personal Storage Options

As enterprises explore more options with the future of cloud computing and storage, we’ll also see a rise in personal use. According to Global Cloud Index forecast, over half of the global population will use cloud storage as personal storage by 2018. More people will adopt services like Dropbox and Amazon cloud storage instead of storing personal photos, videos and other information on their devices or hard drives.