IBM today announced that it has opened a Cloud Computing Laboratory in Hong Kong to support its LotusLive cloud services and the numbers are pretty impressive whichever way you look at them. From the 18 million seats in year one that LotusLive has amassed, to the $126 billion IBM expects the global cloud computing market to be worth by 2012. The 10th cloud computing lab to be opened by IBM, which has been investing heavily in cloud technology for some time now, it's the first by any major IT vendor in Hong Kong.
IBM sees it as being key to global development efforts for public cloud collaboration services, and envisages that the lab will support growth of cloud collaboration by both governments and companies, helping transform communications and collaboration and foster innovation while enhancing efficiency and reducing costs.
The Hong Kong cloud computing team is dedicated to identifying and driving best practices for cloud messaging business in critical areas such as security, privacy and stability by building on the email technology and expertise of Outblaze Limited, a Hong Kong-based company whose messaging assets were acquired by IBM earlier this year. Drawing on emerging market expertise, this unit represents a major expansion of IBM's Web-based mail and collaboration capabilities and acts as a development and services centre focusing on LotusLive messaging development, testing, technical support and services delivery. The core team has rich experience in architecting and operating secure, scalable and reliable SaaS messaging platforms.
Speaking at the official opening, Dominic Tong, General Manager, IBM China/Hong Kong Limited, said: "The opening of the laboratory demonstrates Hong Kong’s advantages as a global hub for world-class information technology and online services and we are delighted that it aligns with the government’s agenda of developing Hong Kong into a centre of excellence in innovation and technology".