Study Finds Feds Backing Private Clouds but Considering Public Options

August 23, 2013 Off By David

Grazed from Midsize Insider. Author: Doug Bonderud.

The US Federal government continues to ramp up cloud spending, with both public and private clouds on the radar for increased adoption over the next five years. Although security and reliability have in large measure driven the adoption of private solutions, public alternatives should see federal investment of up to $7.7 billion by 2017. Just like private sector enterprises, the government is aiming for a best-of-both-worlds model. So what does this mean for midsize IT?

Slow, Then Fast

According to a July 2013 report by IDC, the 2014 fiscal year will be "flat" for federal cloud computing investments; even so, the federal government will still spend $118.3 million on public clouds and $1.7 billion on private clouds. Shawn McCarthy of IDC says that beyond 2014, "[G]rowth potential looks bright. Investments should reach a critical mass around 2015 and beyond." The research firm predicts a renewed focus on cloud computing within the next 18 months…

What is interesting here are the changes from fiscal year 2013. The $1.7 billion that will likely go to private cloud services in 2014 seems to be a lot but represents in fact a 5.7 percent decrease in spending. On the other hand, the $118.3 million earmarked for public cloud services represents a 32.8 percent increase. In other words, federal public clouds are on the rise. So what is going on?…

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