Cloud Revenue of Hosting Service Providers to Pick Up Steam

Although the cloud isn't yet a dominant contributor to hosting service providers' revenue, it will be by 2015, according to a new survey from Interxion, a provider of cloud and carrier-neutral co-location data center services. Reports of the death of the traditional hosting model have apparently been greatly exaggerated—at least on an international scale. The study, based on data from more than 400 hosting service providers in the United States and Europe, shows that demand for traditional hosting is holding firm in Europe, though not so much in the United States. Demand for software-as-a-service (SaaS) offerings also remains strong for both the United States and Europe. However, infrastructure-as-a-service (IaaS) is gaining momentum, especially given that the vast majority of hosting providers are reporting positive ROI gains through this model. The survey also provides insight into how hosting providers plan to boost sales. U.S. service providers' top strategies for leveraging the cloud include focusing on service excellence and better positioning their reseller channel to help handle the influx of business. Channel Insider examines key takeaways from the Interxion study.