White Paper The Changing Face of Cloud Computing - The Fourth GameCloud has come a long way since it first emerged on the computing scene. The concept is metamorphosing to make sound business sense for users while giving cloud computing solution providers a unique platform to differentiate their offerings and services amongst a growing crowd of vendors. The Fourth Game represents a winning adaptation of the cloud philosophy for SMBs in major verticals.

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About the Author

Venguswamy Ramaswamy

Venguswamy Ramaswamy (Swamy) is the Global Head of iON, TCS’ strategic unit for Small and Medium Business. iON provides end-to-end business solutions to the SMB segment. In his previous role, Swamy was the Director of TCS' Global Consulting Practice (GCP) and was instrumental in the structural formation, development, and positioning of TCS’ consulting offerings. He was listed amongst the top 25 consultants in Consulting Magazine in 2007.

During his over 18 year tenure at TCS, Swamy has held several strategic positions that have included managing key customer relationships, building and heading the Process Consulting Group, managing the Corporate Resource Management function, leading numerous Centers of Excellence, as well as launching TCS' first steps in geographies such as Hungary and China.

Swamy is a firm believer in the power of IT to create business value and is known for his interest in Innovation & Quality and expertise in Six Sigma. He is also recognized as a champion of many digitization drives within TCS, including deploying digital platforms for Six Sigma, creativity, and talent acquisition.

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Table of Contents

1. The Early Portrayal of Cloud Computing 4

2. Attracting Wide Scale Usability 5

3. Successful Cloud Computing Optimizes the Local Device 5

4. Cloud aggregators with device leverage 6

5. Cloud apps with browser leverage 6

6. Cloud platforms with on-premise apps leverage 7

7. Futuristic Strategy 7

8. The Fourth Hybrid Strategy in the Cloud 8

The Changing Face of Cloud ComputingVendors are adapting the cloud philosophy to a medley of hybrid formats to deliver maximum benefit to customers while furthering their competitive strategies. After a trilogy of strategies aiming at maximizing the function of the local device, the latest in this series of adaptations is The Fourth Game, an iON offering tailored for SMBs across diverse verticals by TCS.

Cloud computing has evolved considerably since the concept was first introduced some years ago. It was initially presented as a style of computing in which scalable and elastic IT-enabled capabilities are delivered as a service to customers using Internet technologies. In the early days, these IT-enabled capabilities were understood to include managing the operating system software and various software applications, which users could tap as per their need using an Internet connected lightweight computing system. Minimalist (hence, low cost) on-premise hardware was presented as one of the biggest advantages of cloud computing for users. Users would make gains from the perspective of application acquisition as well. Applications in the cloud would be merely used, as opposed to procured, and hence would cost less than traditionally bought applications.

Data storage services also came into the picture and were presented as one of the most useful outcomes of the cloud philosophy. Data pertaining to applications in the cloud would likewise be stored in the cloud. This was cited as a major cost, time and effort saver.

Not only was cloud computing portrayed so appealingly but it was also pitched as the computing technique of the future. Most computing was predicted to move to cloud over the course of a decade. Users were expected to benefit from tapping computing as they do a public utility like electricity or water.

As the cloud philosophy evolved, loopholes in this over-simplistic presentation began to surface. One realization especially applicable to verticals associated with a high number of low-value transactions – such as the retail, quick service restaurant and wellness industries – was that far from becoming lighter, devices on site would become computing heavy even if applications and data relocated to the cloud. The reasoning behind this was that, enterprises with high turnover would considerably slow down their operations if they were mandated to log into a central data center (Central Instance) to record and process each transaction. This grew the relevance of the local instance (the data being captured in the local device).

Numerous challenges arose as users grew wise to this irony in the initial premise of cloud computing. User queries arose over why they should not merely rely on the local device. It became increasingly unclear as to how the cloud would enhance the services offered by the local device. Users essentially needed additional justification to switch to the cloud.

The Early Portrayal of Cloud Computing

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5

Attracting Wide Scale Usability

Pervasive

Cross Premise

Tied to premise

Cloud computing is practically hybrid computing

Today allenterprisesolutionsare a mixof these

True potential of cloud computing

Cloud is emerging

Cloud today is here

Vendors in turn began to realize that the cloud would have to be customized in keeping with evolving work and leisure patterns, in which computing technologies are playing a greater role. Such customization would particularly have to enhance the services provided by the local device to create a compelling business case for the cloud.

A hybrid philosophy emerged as the answer to this challenge. Cloud and local device would work seamlessly together to offer consumers the best possible computing proposition. Vendors drew parallels with public utilities to drive home this concept. Electricity, for instance, is increasingly becoming hybrid to cater to user needs. Today, users cannot rely on the electricity supply of utility companies alone. Whereas electricity utilities provide the equivalent of the central instance i.e. the cloud service, this must be backed up by localized electricity stores such as capacitors and batteries. Local electricity stores like inverters, UPSs, laptop and mobile batteries help consumers to optimize the cloud service. When the cloud service is down or it is more productive to use the local device, the locally anchored service takes over. In time, each is maturing and finding its own place.

Water as a public utility is no different. Users see greater value in a blend of piped supply and distributed tanks than in relying solely on piped water supply. Cloud computing would have to do likewise, and find a local form to anchor itself to appeal to a larger subset of users. That way, cloud computing would also be able to exploit the capacity of the local device and strengthen its business case for potential converts.

Optimizing the capacity of the local device delivers other benefits as well. This capacity helps cater to the trend of data of increasing data density (video, voice, Interactive Voice Response or IVR and conferences)

Successful Cloud Computing Optimizes the Local Device

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and thus, counter one of the challenges in pure cloud – the capacity of centralized computing. Pure cloud computing would mandate no local servers, aka data centers. Data storage would be in the cloud. This raises practical questions, such as, how large could the cloud grow? Also, could the cloud become too heavy to sustain itself? Optimizing the capacity of the local device would ensure cloud sustainability as well as quick access.

A hybrid form of cloud computing modeled on the lines of utility services would also meet growing user expectations from the device, be it a multi-touch animated interaction or the ability of the device to store user preferences. Multi-touch, IVR and data-laden user interfaces are expected to become the norm soon and these will demand a different form of local computing.

Technology advancements outside cloud pertaining to the capabilities of the local device or the technology used to leverage the local device could help cloud computing achieve the aim of optimizing the capacity of the local device and evolve to the next level wherein the hybrid mix – of local and cloud computing – defines each vendors strategy. Based on such advancements, four distinct categories of players are evolving, each with its own strategy to exploit the device.

The first perspective is to leverage the local device, which is best exemplified by Apple with its range of i-devices. Google exemplifies the second perspective, which involves leveraging the browser to exploit the capabilities of the local device. The next group is comprised of companies like Microsoft that are leveraging middleware that links existing applications with applications on the cloud. TCS iON’s unique proposition IT-as-a-Service marks the pinnacle of evolution of the hybrid cloud philosophy where it is leveraging a strong set of business processes and services.

Apple best exemplifies these cloud players. Apple makes its own devices. Consumers work these devices using the pre-installed operating system, which in Apple’s case has become renowned for giving users a rich experience. Consumers can buy services – apps, tunes, games etc – to be played on these devices from the Apple store. These aggregated services offered on cloud drive Apple’s revenue model. Thus, Apple and other cloud players of this kind are exploiting the computing power of the device with the objective of providing users a rich cloud computing experience.

Compliance to open standards is not sacrosanct for this class. Apple devices are, for instance, based on proprietary technology that is a closely guarded secret. Companies that can couple sought after content with a great user experience mostly opt to go down this route because of the higher returns.

Players in this category are offering apps on cloud leveraging the browser. Case in point – Chrome from Google. The idea of leveraging the browser emanates from its increasing role in connected computing, being the intermediary between the user and the web, which represents an entire world online. Since the browser is installed on the local device, it is local from the users’ perspective. This makes it a well placed medium to maximize the value of the local computing capabilities.

As a result, the browser application becomes heavy and occupies a lot of the CPU memory during operations. On the other hand, the browser starts to deliver most of the functionalities of the operating system and makes other software facilitating user interface and navigation redundant.

In future, as vendors of these browsers acquire capabilities to manufacture or outsource the production of

Cloud aggregators with device leverage

Cloud apps with browser leverage

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compatible devices, or tie-up with compatible device vendors, such services are expected to convert into a device platform. The browser would transform into the operating system residing in the device. Unlike the previous category, however, the apps driving these devices would comply with HTML standards and be dynamically updated. Ironically, browsers are the biggest reason for de-standardization today and yet because they are being developed exploiting a technology that is expected to become standard tomorrow, browsers too, will become torch-bearers of standards.

Vendors that are relying minimally on the browser and on the operating system are presently holding out the most complex hybrid cloud offering. Cloud services from such vendors include platforms and middleware designed to help users to maximize the potential of on-premise enterprise servers, such as applications for on-premise email servers. Here, the cloud hosts the enterprise scale applications which complement applications residing locally, in the private servers. Some Microsoft offerings are modeled on these lines, like Microsoft Office SharePoint Server. These cloud offerings are best suited for large firms having rich legacy applications that they are not prepared to immediately give up but are keen to begin transitioning to a hybrid cloud.

Cloud platforms with on-premise apps leverage

Existing Hybrid Cloud Computing Strategies

Strategy Local part Cloud part Tech shift Leverage

On-devicehybrid

On-browserhybrid

On-premisehybrid

Mobiledevice

Browserextentions

EnterpriseServers

Appsaggregation

Apps

Middleware

Device

Browser

MiddlewareMiddlewarebecomes the OS

Browser becomes the OS

Device and OS inseparableiPad

Appsstores

E.g.: Google appsextentions on

Chrome

E.g.: Exchange and SharePoint with Azure

Futuristic Strategy

All the strategies described above are similar by virtue of being based on the need to exploit the potential of the device. It may be the operating system, the utility-rich browser, or the apps that are kept within the device. This choice is determined by the nature of the application. This raises the question: what hybrid model would emerge when the nature of applications becomes more complex? Consider

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an ERP application in the cloud. The provider would necessarily hook up to on-premise enterprise systems to offer the business applications.

In this context, a novel strategy from TCS iON is evolving cloud computing to a whole new level. It recognizes that available cloud computing services cater only to the partial needs of consumers and in turn, expands the layers to which the cloud could specialize to deliver maximum user benefit. In particular, IT implementation, support and training have so far been left out of the cloud menu card. This represents a huge cost for businesses, especially the financially hard-pressed small and medium business sector, because these services take up 60% of IT spend.

The Fourth Hybrid Strategy in the Cloud

Unless IT services are commoditized, IT utility will remain a pipe dream

Services included commoditization happens

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Utilityessentials

NicheVerticle

Verticle CoreApplications

Common BusinessApplications...

Common Office Applications

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Change managem

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Data M

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Application Configuration

System integration

Performance M

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TCS iON is offering IT-enabled capabilities in the cloud, in the widest sense to plug the holes in the system. IT-as-a-Service from TCS iON covers all the possible IT needs of its target clientele – small and medium businesses – from the essential computing and networking hardware to applications needed for day-to-day office management, business management and vertical specific utilities. Consulting services covering the implementation and support of the hardware and applications onsite is part of the bundle of services as well. This is where TCS Cloud IT-as-a-Service for SME stands out. In adding the human interface to application services, it conclusively becomes the fourth strategy in the cloud. Implementation and support services step in to ensure maximum output is derived from the device.

Local device capabilities are optimized from another point of view as well – since, these devices are rented instead of being procured, users are spared from the costs of upgradation.

Users also gain traditional cloud service benefits such as low cost from pay-as-you-use and the freedom from getting involved with IT provisioning, including hardware. Additional standardization, cost and quality benefits kick in from dealing with one provider of repute, possessing the proven capability of delivering essential consultancy services and support, the backbone of this fourth hybrid strategy in the cloud.

All content / information present here is the exclusive property of Tata Consultancy Services Limited (TCS). The content / information contained here is correct at the time of publishing. No material from here may be copied, modified, reproduced, republished, uploaded, transmitted, posted or distributed in any form without prior written permission from TCS. Unauthorized use of the content / information appearing here may violate copyright, trademark and

other applicable laws, and could result in criminal or civil penalties. Copyright © 2012 Tata Consultancy Services Limited TCS

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IAbout Tata Consultancy Services (TCS)Tata Consultancy Services is an IT services, consulting and business solutions organization that delivers real results to global business, ensuring a level of certainty no other firm can match. TCS offers a consulting-led, integrated portfolio of IT and IT-enabled infrastructure, engineering

TMand assurance services. This is delivered through its unique Global Network Delivery Model , recognized as the benchmark of excellence in software development. A part of the Tata Group, India’s largest industrial conglomerate, TCS has a global footprint and is listed on the National Stock Exchange and Bombay Stock Exchange in India.

For more information, visit us at www.tcs.com

IT ServicesBusiness SolutionsOutsourcing

ContactTo know more about iON Toll Free Number 1800 209 6030Email ion.salessupport@tcs.com

About iON iON is Tata Consultancy Services’ strategic unit for Small and Medium Business. iON provides end - to - end business solutions to the SMB segment, the growth engine of the economy. iON caters to the needs of multiple industry segments with best practices gained through TCS’ global experience, domestic market reach, skills, know-how and delivery capabilities.

For more information, visit us at www.tcsion.com

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