The Cloud Makes It Rain Money: The Business in Cloud Computing - Deploying and Managing a Cloud Infrastructure - page 348

Cloud computing is a business model that brings new tech-
nologies together to solve complex, modern-day business
problems. The aim to achieve ubiquity pushes the cloud to
offer on-demand services as required by the user. This business model and these services
help organizations expand their outreach into new markets and try out new brands in
established markets. In this chapter, we will start with the nature of cloud business and
cloud business models. We will then take a look at how the enterprise cloud provides new
opportunities to organizations willing to utilize cloud computing for competitive advan-
tage. Finally, we'll discuss the essential topics of disaster recovery through replication and
redundancy and business continuity in the cloud.
The Nature of Cloud Business
The cloud is not only about technology. Understanding cloud business is a key to under-
standing the nature of cloud computing and its associations. In the following sections,
you will learn about the service nature of cloud computing and about doing business with
open-source software (OSS) and explore white label branding.
The Service Nature of the Cloud
A common question today is about the nature of cloud business and cloud computing
services—is it about technology or is it more of a business model? The truth of the matter
is that it is not as much about competing technologies as it is about a new business orienta-
tion. However, without the technology aspect, the business model will not exist.
The business model is basically about computing services being provided on demand,
when they are needed, swiftly and efficiently and in a cost-effective way. This can be thought
of as a business-scale policy that ensures that a business has the IT support it needs for
services, terms, and costs. Previously, the discussion revolved around the number of servers
needed, the IT specialists required, the number of licenses to be bought, and the time needed
to make things happen. Now, though, it is much more about provisioning cloud resources,
acquiring cloud expertise, and making the solutions accessible as cloud services.
The technology plays a key part in making cloud computing possible. At its core, cloud
computing is all about IT capabilities providing the same resources, applications, infrastruc-
ture, and platform but in an ultra-ubiquitous and scalable way using the Web as the access
medium. This helps organizations migrate the worry (i.e., developing an understanding
about IT capabilities) to the cloud and concentrate on the business itself.