Cloud computing boosts Didata

Johannesburg - Dimension Data's (Didata's) move to hosted and outsourced services has received a boost in the recession and will outlast the downturn, said the specialist IT group.

Hosted services, which form part of Didata's systems integration business, have grown 25% globally during the six months to end-March, said company chairperson Jeremy Ord.

While analysts have attributed a move to outsourcing and hosted services as a cost-cutting reaction to the recession, Dimension Data's CEO for Middle East and Africa Allan Cawood said that the trend started before the downturn.

"The market is moving to a stage where software as a service, and hosting, are definitely what is going to happen. It's a case of how quickly the trend moves and we always think things will happen more quickly than they do," he said.

"We've been talking about software as a service for a while now, but it hasn't seen much traction in the market yet, to be honest. What we usually see with these trends is that when it does get going, the flood gates seem to fly open."

Cawood said he doesn't think the trend is only about cutting costs. By making use of hosted services and software as a service, companies reduce risks and do not have to worry about issues like maintenance and back-up.

"It just makes sense," he said.

By contrast, systems integration - responsible for 79% or $1.5bn of Didata's revenues - has shown 3% growth only. It has also taken a back seat to the group's Internet Solutions and Plessey, a telecommunications infrastructure provider, which have grown by 37% and 58% respectively.

- Fin24.com