Google Cloud Next: Google Finally Joins the Serverless Ranks, but Enterprises Aren’t Interested Yet

C. Dunlap

Summary Bullets:

• Google announced the general availability of Cloud Functions, but are enterprises ready for serverless computing?
• • The Google Cloud Build app development environment supports the increased demand for CICD among enterprises.

Google announced general availability of its serverless platform, Cloud Functions, during last week’s Google Cloud Next conference in San Francisco. The growing phenomenon of serverless computing pits Google most squarely against cloud rivals AWS Lambda and Microsoft Azure Functions. Google’s serverless solution, founded on App Engine, runs alongside its Cloud Services Platform and offers new runtimes, additional languages, and enhanced performance, networking, and security features.

Apple, Facebook, and Google Won’t Destroy Denmark’s Environmental Achievements

C. Drake

Summary Bullets:

• New data centers operated by Apple, Facebook, and Google will contribute to rising energy consumption in Denmark over the next decade, coinciding with a growing shortfall of renewable energy.
• Despite concerns about their environmental impact, hyperscale Internet firms are supporting various energy efficiency initiatives, including energy recycling and new data center design and deployment methods.

A recent Danish government memorandum raised new concerns about the long-term environmental impact of data centers operated by large Internet companies such as Apple, Facebook, and Google. However, while such concerns should be taken seriously, they need to be understood within the context of wider initiatives by hyperscale Internet firms to improve data center energy efficiency.

Inmarsat: Filling IoT Coverage Gaps for ‘Always On’ Applications

A. Amir

Summary Bullets:

• Satellite providers have key roles to drive IoT market especially in filling the coverage gaps in remote areas
• Satellites are mainly used for backhaul network, not so practical as the last mile access due to its technical limitations such as latency and physical dimensions

While some satellite providers are entering the IoT space and compete against the mobile operators (for more, please see Cable and Satellite Companies Pushing into IoT: Can They Win Against Mobile Operators?, July 6, 2018) other satellite providers such as Inmarsat are partnering with carriers to fill the IoT coverage gaps in areas beyond cellular network can reach offshore oilrigs, airplanes in transit, remote environmental monitoring, and vehicle and people tracking. Based on GlobalData’s IoT Deployment Database, there are more than 100 satellite-based IoT deployments tracked, with an installed base that almost doubled in the last two years. This also reflects the IoT market trend shown by GlobalData IoT Project Insight 2017 (n=924) where 17% of IoT deployments today are on fleet management (the third highest after equipment management and building management). In some cases, the satellite network is also used in cellular areas, but offered as network diversity to offer higher availability for mission critical applications such as payment terminals in petrol stations.

SD-WAN and Hybrid VPN in the Art of Digital Network Transformation

Joel Stradling – Research Director, Business Network and IT Services

Summary Bullets:

• GlobalData research reveals that an overwhelming majority – 85% of participants in a live web poll (see chart below) – view the evolution of their WAN as critical or very important to the overall digital transformation program.
• Business outcome is the new discussion focus around WAN evolution between enterprises and their managed service provider suppliers.
• Industry vertical segments have unique needs, and any network transformation can be built with those demands. This blog explores three verticals in greater depth: manufacturing, logistics, and services.

Current WAN implementations are falling short of business requirements. During a recent survey (Reference: GlobalData enterprise survey November 2017), research indicated that most businesses have a strong desire, indeed a near obsession, to move applications and workloads to the cloud. The virtualization of servers and other IT infrastructure are viewed with positive attitudes for achieving cost savings and agility. However the emergence of novel technologies, such as AI, IoT, 5G, and big data analytics, is placing more and more pressure on legacy WAN technologies. Thus various industry verticals highlighted the shortcoming of current WANs, and the steps being taken to evolve corporate IT and networking to the next level of agile infrastructure.

Apple v. Pepper Elevated to U.S. Supreme Court, Where Developers Seek Acknowledgment

C. Dunlap

Summary Bullets:

• The U.S. Supreme Court is taking on the Apple v. Pepper antitrust case to determine whether the Apple iOS App Store represents an anti-competitive monopoly and, as such, whether users can sue Apple.
• A ruling for Apple by the court will impact software developers’ ongoing role in providing the innovation behind mobile apps.

The newly pending U.S. Supreme Court case which will determine whether Apple’s App Store distribution model represents an anti-competitive monopoly could have far-reaching ramifications among software developers, whose collective brain trust is already at a premium and in great shortage.

Multi-Cloud Services: Fujitsu’s Take

J. Marcus

Summary Bullets:

• Just as multi-cloud usage is recognized as a necessity, IT suppliers are keen to help enterprises reduce its inherent complexity.
• Fujitsu is strengthening its multi-cloud integration and operations services by partnering with key platform vendors and training thousands of service professionals to achieve relevant certifications.

Starting in the second half of last year, the focus on hybrid cloud implementations shifted towards the need to accommodate concurrent management of workloads running on multiple cloud platforms, and this has emerged as one of the biggest themes in cloud computing. Whether it is the case of central IT looking for some level of control over enterprise-wide consumption or the equally common justification for the same organization using, say, Amazon EC2 for one set of workloads while using Azure and/or VMware for others, ‘hybrid’ management solutions now need to support this multi-cloud usage.

Megadeal Between Microsoft and Walmart Speaks More About Fast AI Than Global Scale

B. Shimmin

Summary Bullets:

• Walmart’s announcement that it would use Microsoft’s cloud platform and desktop apps across its entire business looks to be a direct shot across the bow of Amazon, a direct counterpoint to Amazon’s own ‘All In’ marketing mantra.
• Instead, this partnership speaks more to the operationalization and unification of synergistic technologies – AI, IoT, big data – as a means of speeding time to market for Walmart’s numerous customer engagement projects.

At first blush, Walmart’s announcement that it would use Microsoft’s cloud platform and desktop apps across its entire business looks to be a direct shot across the bow of Amazon the retailer and Amazon the provider of public cloud services with Amazon Web Services (AWS).

Release of AI-optimized Kunlun Chip a Game Changer for Baidu

R. Bhattacharyya

Summary Bullets:

• During its AI developer conference, Baidu made several announcements that demonstrate how it is moving the Chinese AI market forward, but the release of its Kunlun chip stands out as a key move that repositions it in the not only the Chinese market, but also globally
• With Kunlun, Baidu joins the ranks of a select few companies that not only offer an AI platform that helps enterprises deploy AI-infused solutions, but that have also developed their own hardware to maximize AI processing.

Baidu is hot on the heels of the likes of Microsoft and Google. Although already known as an ambitious player in the AI realm, primarily in China, the search engine provider hasn’t managed to establish itself as a major force in the space, until now. Earlier this month, Baidu announced that it is bringing to market an AI-optimized chip, called Kunlun.  With the move, Baidu joins the ranks of a select few companies that not only offer an AI platform that helps enterprises deploy AI-infused solutions, but have also developed their own hardware to maximize AI processing. 

Is the Writing on the Wall for Digital Whiteboards?

T. Banting

Summary Bullets:

• Without significant development, interactive whiteboards (IWBs) are unlikely to gain traction, as the ability to replicate (albeit digitally) a physical whiteboard lacks business value.
• IWBs will struggle to gain traction, as app sharing, touch-screen devices, and styluses are more likely to be utilized by many.

In previous articles, we observed that the interactive whiteboard (IWB) market appeared to be dividing into three distinct segments:

1. High-end video endpoints with multi-touch screens (e.g., Cisco Webex Board);
2. High-end computing devices augmented with AV hardware (e.g., Microsoft Surface Hub, Windows Collaboration Displays, and Google Jamboard);
3. All-in-one devices leveraging existing physical whiteboards (e.g., Highfive in partnership with Dolby).

Last Thursday, Microsoft announced the general availability of its Whiteboard app for Windows 10 after its prior preview in December 2017. With the ability to draw, type, add and manipulate images, annotate, recognize shapes and tables, and add sticky notes, Whiteboard can run on numerous stylus-based devices such as Surface Hubs and laptops today, with iOS support planned in the future.

Cable and Satellite Companies Pushing into IoT: Can They Win Against Mobile Operators?

K. Weldon

Summary Bullets:

• U.S. cable operators and satellite TV providers have been entering the IoT market over the past two years, selling smart home and wearable solutions to consumers, as well as B2B offerings to businesses.
• Cox Communications, Comcast, and Dish Networks are actively providing B2B IoT services already or have plans in place to do so.

How Do Cablecos Deliver IoT Services?

Cablecos and satellite TV providers differ fundamentally from mobile operators because they don’t actually own spectrum or licensed wireless networks. But, they have other ‘cards up their sleeves’ which give them a route to market.