The emergence of the revolutionary cloud ICT services in mature markets has transformed the operations of technology providers as well as enterprises. Cloud services that originated in MEDCs – which combine novel content with innovative software and, subsequently, efficient services – are now set to do the same for emerging markets.
This transition implies that the previously unavailable cloud IT services are now accessible to enterprises within the EMEs – which will allow these firms to capitalise on local or regional vertical developments. Examples include data and privacy governance in Malaysia, social network applications development in Turkey or media technologies in South Africa.
The rise of cloud ICT services within the EMEs is evident in figures. EM enterprises are set to grow to $10.4bn by 2017 (forecasted by Ovum). Additionally, the compound annual growth rate (CAGR) for emerging markets for Cloud ICT between 2012 and 2017 will be 37%, compared with typically single-digit CAGR for established managed network and IT services. Given EMEs businesses’ desire to simplify operations and manage costs, the cloud ICT service enterprises will potentially have a larger source of revenue to exploit.
South Africa is rapidly transforming into a market in which the main clients of ICT reside, and therefore the country requires the highest level of communications and IT developments. As a country that houses 70% (and rising) of Africa’s major companies, coupled with rising demand for business intelligence, there are significant opportunities for Cloud ICT service providers. Additionally, South Africa’s desire to support operations management in complementary markets such as Asia and Latin America also encourage its growing sectors such as mining and banking to transit into cloud operations. The cloud’s ability to raise operational efficiencies and lower costs without incurring significant CAPEX places the cloud as a perfect tool to navigate its way around the big data revolution, especially in the communications sector.
Regarding South Africa’s slow adoption of Cloud IT services, it had stemmed from the poor public provision, evident from the lack of attention towards the Information Society Programme (an entity that set out the country’s ICT strategy). However, institutions such as the South African Revenue Services (SARS) are beginning to inspire demands for cloud services through its implementation of easy tax returns via mobile devices and electronic operations in aiding consumption.
Ultimately, this article believes South Africa will in time reach the clouds, however it must fight for supportive regulations, create innovative solutions, and execute consistent policies to address local market complexities.
