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Mainstream adoption of hybrid cloud may be five years away, says Gartner


It could be another five years before 'hybrid cloud' solutions are widely adopted by businesses, according to Gartner.

Hybrid cloud is where businesses operate via a mix of IT infrastructure, utilising some of their own in-house IT systems and services alongside cloud-based IT platforms, infrastructure or software that is uniquely used by their business and by other users.

In a new report, the market analysts said it would take "two to five years" for hybrid cloud technology to reach the 'plateau of productivity' stage of the technological 'hype cycle'.

The plateau of productivity is a term that Gartner said refers to the time where "mainstream adoption" of a technology "starts to take off". During this stage the "criteria for assessing provider viability are more clearly defined" and the "technology's broad market applicability and relevance" are shown as "clearly paying off", it said.

IT contracts expert Iain Monaghan of Pinsent Masons, the law firm behind Out-Law.com, said that prospect of cost savings is a major factor in businesses shifting IT systems to the cloud. However, he said that a recent report showed that it is not always easy for organisations to determine the level of cloud use that produces optimum savings.

In a cloud comparison index published in June, Information Services Group (ISG) highlighted that prices between major public cloud providers vary by up to 35% and public cloud is not always cheaper for businesses that running their own internal IT infrastructure.

Monaghan also said that whilst the major adoption of hybrid cloud requires a business model that spans public cloud and private cloud, at the moment, the two business models are "not integrated".

"Even where the same service provider is offering both services, private cloud will usually be available on ‘traditional’ outsourcing terms while public cloud is offered only on commodity terms," Monaghan said. "The challenges aren’t just technical and regulatory: they are also commercial and contractual."

In July, the Prudential Regulation Authority in Australia said that it did not think Australian banks are suitably prepared to deal with the risks involved in hosting important IT systems and data in the 'public cloud'.

Technology law expert Angus McFadyen of Pinsent Masons, the law firm behind Out-Law.com, said at the time that it was "clear that regulators around the globe share similar concerns".

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