UBM TechWeb's Cloud Connect Makes 12 Cloud Predictions for 2012

SAN FRANCISCO, Jan. 11, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- Cloud Connect, the premier technology event for cloud computing produced by UBM TechWeb, presents the top 12 predictions in cloud computing for 2012.  In five years, cloud computing has evolved from a novelty to information technology's growth area.  As Cloud Connect works to drive the adoption of cloud computing, these predictions speak to the latest technologies, platforms, strategies, and innovations that will drive business objectives forward.  Cloud Connect will take place February 13-16, 2012 at the Santa Clara Convention Center, Santa Clara, CA. For more information, visit http://cloudconnectevent.com/santaclara.  

Entering into the new year, Alistair Croll, Conference Chair, Cloud Connect and Principal Analyst, Bitcurrent offers the top 12 predictions in cloud computing for 2012:

• The move to platforms: IT will need to deliver platforms, not machines. The best IT teams will be those that embrace private and public platforms as a service and worry about real issues such as lock-in, usage costs and compliance.
• The move out to public clouds: There will be a resurgence in public cloud adoption this year, albeit with a savvier approach compared to years past.
• The advent of Big Data: The rise of large, unstructured datasets, along with the tools to crunch and interact with them, is poised to change every facet of how organizations make decisions.
• Spikiness: Today's code has to be specially engineered to take advantage of a cloud and it's only a matter of time before compilers get an "optimize for cloud" checkbox.  The code generated will be smart enough to grab all available computing. That means new planning tools to measure and constrain these newly elastic applications will become available and we'll see the emergence of management tools that consider user experience and provider cost.
• Consumer expectations come back to roost: Public clouds and technology upstarts are shaping IT expectations for end users, executives and shareholders.  IT will have to satisfy a significant number of these expectations in 2012, or plan to answer to its stakeholders.
• One messy leak: There will be at least one spectacularly messy breach of data, and the cloud will get the blame.  As a result, regulators will spring into action, enforcing two-factor authentication and password generation and refreshing policies.
• Disaster recovery and scaling are the new drivers: Disaster recovery and elastic scaling will replace cost savings and convenience as the big reasons for enterprises to adopt the cloud.
• An SLA detente: The realization that providers have been trying to tell us something: a company can have any Service Level Agreement it wants, as long as it architects it correctly from well-understood component services and finds a way to turn risk into economic value.
• The rise of real brokerages: Managing cloud offerings will soon turn enterprise IT professionals into procurement officers and contract negotiators, handling myriad terms and conditions, payment schemes, and disputes.  In a market with many buyers and sellers, brokerages inevitably emerge and will simplify and standardize transactions.
• Virtual machines and real hardware: When more and more machines are virtual, real bare-metal hardware is precious. Only hardware can be trusted, whether that's for cryptography, security, or physical location. Ironically, the hardware-free aspect of clouds may give hardware new life.
• What can't I put in the cloud?: In 2012, there will be a real comparison of on- and off-cloud solutions, and for many businesses, the real question will be what can't be better done in a cloud.
• Infrastructure, code, and data are intertwined: Writing code, storing data and managing infrastructure will soon be one and the same.

"In the five years since cloud computing vaulted into the enterprise, it's gone from nerdy pariah to a cornerstone of IT strategy," said Alistair Croll, Principal Analyst at Bitcurrent and Conference Chair of Cloud Connect. "We know what it's for, why it rocks, and how it breaks. As an essential component of nearly every modern product or service, it's critical to understand where clouds are headed for business -- and for society."

Each of these trends and predictions will be covered in-depth at Cloud Connect Santa Clara, which will feature over 60 breakout sessions across key technology themes like Cloud Security, Big Data Processing, the Future of Utility Computing and Mobile Cloud.  As the premier event for cloud computing, Cloud Connect offers a multi-track conference, in-depth workshops like Carrier Cloud Forum, Cloud Crash Course, Cloud Performance Summit, Building Scalable Cloud Applications, an expo floor featuring nearly 100 companies, and many networking opportunities. Sponsors of the event currently include: Super Diamond Sponsor Cisco Systems; Diamond Sponsors Citrix Systems, Hewlett Packard, IBM, Rackspace Hosting and Red Hat; Platinum Sponsors GoGrid, Sungard Availability Services and Terremark; Gold Sponsors Brocade, CoreSite, Interxion, SOASTA, Softlayer and Windows Azure; Silver Sponsors Apica, CloudSoft, Mahindra Satyam, Morphlabs, Newvem, OneBill Software, Opscode, Savvis, ServiceMesh Inc., Tier 3 and Xeround INC. For more information visit: http://www.cloudconnectevent.com/santaclara.

About Cloud Connect
Cloud Connect, produced by UBM TechWeb, is the defining event of the cloud computing industry. As both a conference and an exhibition, Cloud Connect's goal is to chart the course of cloud computing's development by bringing together enterprise IT professionals, developers, infrastructure and service providers and cloud computing innovators. UBM TechWeb has produced cloud events that define and frame cloud computing discussions since June 2008, including Cloud Summit Executive and Enterprise Cloud Summit at Interop. Cloud Connect is a one-of-a-kind event that encompasses the entire cloud computing ecosystem. For more information visit: www.cloudconnectevent.com.

About UBM TechWeb
UBM TechWeb the global leader in technology media and professional information, enables people and organizations to harness the transformative power of technology. Through its three core businesses – media solutions, marketing services and paid content – UBM TechWeb produces the most respected and consumed brands and media applications in the technology market. More than 14.5 million business and technology professionals (CIOs and IT managers, Web & Digital professionals, Software Developers, Government decision makers, and Telecom providers) actively engage in UBM TechWeb's communities and information resources monthly. UBM TechWeb brands include: global face-to-face events such as Interop, Web 2.0, Black Hat and Enterprise Connect; award-winning online resources such as InformationWeek, Light Reading, and Network Computing; and market-leading magazines InformationWeek, Wall Street & Technology, and Advanced Trading. UBM TechWeb is a part of UBM plc, one of the world's largest media businesses as a global provider of news distribution and specialist information services with a market capitalization of more than $2.5 billion.

SOURCE UBM TechWeb