Special Features:
IDC SURVEY: STRONG INTEREST FOR
UTILITY COMPUTING
According to the results of an IDC study examining the services perspective
of
utility computing, nearly 65% of 34 potential customers interviewed indicated
that they are interested in leveraging this type of service. While the market
for utility computing, on-demand services is in its early stages, responses
from these potential customers provided a look under the covers at what
customer expectations are in buying these services as well as in working with
companies that want to sell these offerings.
IDC views utility computing as the "next generation" of provisioning IT
services that extends from its roots in outsourcing and managed services.
Essentially, IT is moving from being managed by a third party (service
provider) as a dedicated set of IT services for "one" customer's
infrastructure to being managed like a true "public" utility. In the former
model of a dedicated infrastructure, providers usually take control and
ownership of assets and staff as part of an outsourced agreement, or just take
control with no transfer of staff or assets as part of a managed services
agreement. In a "public" utility model, "unrelated" customers leverage a
common, shared infrastructure that is owned by the service provider and in
which there is no transfer of staff.
"Although the utility computing market is in its nascent stage, there is
tremendous customer interest in leveraging this type of service offering,"
said David Tapper, program manager for IT Outsourcing and Utility Services at
IDC. "Given the potential impact this type of service could have on the
ecosystem of IT and communications services providers as well as technology
vendors, IDC believes it is critical that players wanting to succeed in this
market seize the first-mover opportunity to build their strategies, offerings,
and market position to improve the likelihood of establishing a leading
position."
IDC believes that for service providers to compete in this market
successfully, they must consider the following:
- Thoroughly educating customers on utility computing and its benefits
- Establishing an internal champion within customer organizations
- Overcoming a considerable range of customer concerns, least of which is
proving that utility computing services work
- More clearly defining their market position and utility computing
strategy
- Providing a compelling, robust value proposition to gain customer
trust
- Developing a strong channel strategy to ensure gaining access to the
"point of sale"
- Focusing on early adoption points
This demand-side IDC study, Utility Computing: A Look at Demand-Side Needs
for
On-Demand Computing Services (IDC #28864), provides an in-depth look at the
perspectives of potential customers in leveraging utility computing, on-
demand services. In addition to customer perspectives, this study provides a
broad set of findings that includes customer expectations for pricing, type of
service offerings, and preference for suppliers. The purpose of this document
is to help players that want to compete in this emerging market begin building
a utility computing strategy, understand what first steps need to be taken to
identify potential customers and what are some specific customer requirements
that have to be met and concerns that have to be overcome.
To purchase this document, call IDC's sales hotline at 508-988-7988 or
email sales@idc.com.
For more information about IDC's IT Outsourcing and Utility Services
research, please contact Virginia Lehr at 508-934-4188 or email vlehr@idc.com.
About IDC
IDC is the foremost global market intelligence and advisory firm helping
clients gain insight into technology and ebusiness trends to develop sound
business strategies. Using a combination of rigorous primary research, in-
depth analysis, and client interaction, IDC forecasts worldwide markets and
trends to deliver dependable service and client advice. More than 700 analysts
in 43 countries provide global research with local content. IDC's customers
comprise the world's leading IT suppliers, IT organizations, ebusiness
companies, and the financial community.
Web site: www.idc.com.
|
