Enterprise Apps and Cloud Computing

Here's an interesting stat. According to Juniper research, the market for cloud-based mobile apps is going to grow by nearly 90% between 2009 and 2014. And 75% of those apps are going to be enterprise apps.Huh.If you didn't know this already, only a tiny percentage of the current app market constitutes of enterprise apps.  So how will cloud computing magically change all that?Well before we go into how that will happen, it's worth taking a look at what cloud computing is all about. To put it very simply, cloud computing is the use of computing resources over the internet and through a web browser. These resources are located in remote servers whose geographical location is of little concern for the user. They can use those resources from anywhere in the planet, as long as there is a stable internet connection. Cloud computing generally falls into any of the three categories; Software as a service (SaaS), Platform as a service (PaaS) and Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS).Now we can understand why cloud computing will be a boon for enterprise apps. Enterprise apps require a lot of customization, a lot of tweaking. Different businesses have different requirements, as well as different phone platforms their apps need to be customized for. Cloud services will definitely make things easier for developers.Another great advantage of cloud services is that companies themselves will not have to dedicated servers for that particular app. Says John Barnes, CTO of Model Metrics  "One advantage of these cloud platforms is you can synch from the mobile device to the cloud without intermediate servers or a VPN". The advantage this provides to small and medium companies is incalculable.Cloud computing is only going to get bigger and better, so join us as we explore the possibilities of the cloud as a means of delivering web and mobile apps. The Web Spiders' cloud computing event in London on the 18th of November will feature industry experts, including Microsoft talking about the future of cloud computing.