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Microsoft TechEd: Future of Business is Mobility, Cloud
Microsoft continued to show that cloud and mobility are at the core of its strategy during the TechEd conference this week. According to Brad Anderson, vice president of Microsoft's Cloud and Enterprise division, the future of business is in mobility and cloud—and that future is now.
Chris Talbot
May 14, 2014
2 Min Read
Brad Anderson, vice president of Microsoft's Cloud and Enterprise division
Microsoft (MSFT) continued to show that cloud and mobility are at the core of its strategy during the TechEd conference this week. According to Brad Anderson, vice president of Microsoft’s Cloud and Enterprise division, the future of business is in mobility and cloud—and that future is now.
Of course, we probably could have told Anderson that if he’d asked. We’re not talkin’ cloud for nothin’, after all. With business of all sizes adopting cloud at even a basic level, the future of IT is changing on a daily basis, and more and more that future is the cloud. And yes, it really is now.
Announcements at TechEd follow on recent news out of Redmond, including the launch of its Amazon DirectConnect competitor ExpressRoute for Azure. As of TechEd, Microsoft Azure is now boasting several partners involved in ExpressRoute, including Equinix, BT, Verizon, Zadara Storage, TelecityGroup, AT&T, SingTel and Level 3. Through those partnerships, ExpressRoute went from launch to a global direct connection system to the Azure cloud almost overnight.
Other cloud-related highlights out of TechEd include:
The launch later this year of Microsoft Office 365 on a variety of platforms, including Apple (AAPL) iOS and Google (GOOG) Android phones and tablets. Word, PowerPoint, Outlook and Excel apps will launch on iPad and iPhone, as well as Android devices.
A preview of Azure RemoteApp, which provides organizations with mobile access to Windows applications from a variety of different mobile devices. It’s not quite ready for prime time, but it seems likely Microsoft will make bigger announcements around the application later this year.
Also announced to be in preview is Microsoft Azure Files, a cloud storage file sync and share system that looks designed to compete with the likes of Dropbox, Box and Google Drive. Considering the seemingly exponential increase in file sync and share offerings, Microsoft may have an uphill battle gaining traction, but having a strong Azure user base already could help make that market penetration quicker and easier.
Hyper-V Recovery Manager will get a makeover next month, as it’s being renamed Azure Site Recovery. It will still be in preview, but it should give Microsoft a chance at scoring a larger share of the cloud-based disaster recovery market.
There’s plenty of news coming out of TechEd related to the cloud. Check back regularly for updates on Microsoft’s evolving cloud strategy.
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