The increasing maturity and customer awareness of cloud services in Europe is impelling a phased migration from premise-based data centres to a cloud environment. With this shift, public cloud providers such as AWS and Google have identified a large market for Infrastructure-as-a-Service (IaaS) solutions. The convergence of cloud services with emerging applications like Big Data and Internet of Things (IoT) creates more opportunities for growth, encouraging innovations in infrastructure and platforms.
European Infrastructure-as-a-Service Market, Forecast to 2021, the new analysis from Frost & Sullivan’s IT Services & Applications Growth Partnership Service program, analyses the emerging trends, competitive factors and provider strategies in the European IaaS market. Western Europe, specifically Germany, the UK and Benelux, leads the market; in due course, Eastern Europe also will emerge an influential region.
As the pace of migration of each enterprise depends on its size, type and regional presence, IaaS providers are recognising that a one-size-fits-all solution is not ideal. They are, therefore, developing nuances within their portfolios to meet each customer's unique requirements.
“The varying cloud-readiness of enterprises has fostered a market for hybrid IT, and service providers are tailoring their portfolios to meet this enterprise requirement,” said Digital Transformation Research Analyst Shuba Ramkumar. “Astutely, they are seeking to cement long-term customer relations in this emerging market by offering managed, consulting and professional services to guide customers through the transition period.”
The biggest challenge for IaaS providers in Europe is the regional nature of the market, which compels them to adopt indirect channel strategies to expand their presence across European countries. Partnerships with local providers will give them a stronger foothold in European countries where there are strict security regulations about data being housed within countries’ borders.
“Meanwhile, enterprises’ increased familiarity with cloud services and recognition of its benefits will reduce the impact of adoption deterrents such as security,” noted Ramkumar. “The ability of IaaS to improve performance, data migration and management, as well as enhance business agility, will eventually attract investments from data centres of all sizes, across Europe.”
