Analysis says small businesses will gradually turn to cloud computing services to reduce costs

Lead: Foreign media wrote in Wednesday that more and more small businesses are expected to use cloud computing services next year to reduce costs and hope to operate as usual in the event of an emergency. The following is the original article: Cloud computing is a new method of computing based on the Internet, which can provide on-demand computing for individuals and business users through the Internet. As of April 2010, small businesses using cloud computing services were about 7%, according to research firm IDC.　　But as more and more small businesses turn to cloud computing services, that figure may be over 10% by the middle of 2011. "Economics and usability are aspects of the future development of small businesses," said Raymond Boggs, Rey Bergus vice president of the SME Research Department of IDC. "Cost-saving software used in cloud computing is usually paid for free or in use, which is more acceptable than paying high upfront licensing fees." According to a survey by Microsoft in the autumn, half of the small business of cloud computing says corporate revenues have improved.　　Microsoft also offers cloud computing services. Some surveys also show that some companies hesitate to use cloud computing, and they are unwilling to abandon already familiar systems or invest in new systems.　　Some companies have already used cloud computing and say it will help them save money.　　Garey Willbanks, head of Boiler Management Ltd in Houston, said the company's cost of storing information in cloud computing was about $600 a month, 10% less than the cost of hiring professionals to maintain internal storage servers. The 2008-year operation of Hurricane Ike (IKE), which led to the disruption of local power supplies in Houston, prompted the Wilbanks-owned company to use cloud computing instead. Wilbanks said the power outage caused the server to be unable to connect within 24 hours and the company's business was paralyzed.　　After using cloud computing, the company no longer needs professional maintenance servers, and can get the information they need through networked devices anytime, anywhere.　　Some business owners like Wilbanks use cloud computing only to back up information, while others use the Internet to order the required application software services, which is called "Software as a service".　　Rob Enderle, an analyst with technology consultancy, Rob Endler that cloud computing services often provide a large number of affordable software for small businesses. Michael Tracy, a private legal practitioner in Irvine, California, decided in June this year to use Nextpoint software based on cloud computing (Michael Trecy). Prior to that, he had an annual authorization fee of 1-1.20,000 for the software used to collate the pre-trial materials, and the use of these software was quite low.　　After using Nextpoint, Tracy pays only when using the software, and is expected to cost only 4,000 to 6,000 dollars a year. Cloud computing software does not need to pay beforeThe cost is low and can be reduced by simplifying the process.　　 Using cloud computing not only saves a variety of costs, but also helps companies save more, Enderle said. There are risks, although cloud computing can save costs. If cloud computing software vendors are unreliable, security issues may arise. "If software vendors want to make money directly from their customers, they will ensure that their information is secure," Enderle. Conversely, if they want to make money through advertising, they may sell their customer information to advertisers. "Cloud computing software does not have such problems as internal software customization. In addition, some companies fear that using cloud computing can lose information or slow data transmission. Hanger Project LLC founder Cobby Allison (Kirby Allison), a hanger manufacturer based in Dallas, has been using cloud-based marketing software campaigner for two years. "If we stop using the software, we lose the opportunity to get so much information," he said. "Allison plans to continue to use campaigner and expects to send thousands of promotional emails to customers through the software each month for about $25." "Such costs are not high, but they play a big role," he said. (Jiangxue)