Google says shift to cloud accelerating

Google predicts the best days are still ahead for cloud computing.

The pace at which customers are moving their data to the cloud is picking up, and the price of such services will drop at a slower pace in 2015 compared to this year, said Barak Regev, Google's cloud chief for Europe, the Middle East and Africa.

"The adoption curve is extremely accelerating and we're seeing it coming from a variety of companies," Regev said at the Bloomberg Enterprise Technology Summit in London.

Cloud is "bigger than any market out there if you think about the potential for adoption - even bigger than the advertising market".

Companies from banks to electronics manufacturer Royal Philips NV (PHIA) are shifting to cloud services, which let users access data and computing power via the internet, Regev said.

Google, based in Mountain View, California, has been seeking growth beyond its advertising business, with a focus on cloud computing.

Last month, it unveiled new networking tools for quickly accessing such features while also cutting prices to catch up to larger providers in the field, including Amazon.com.

Google doesn't break out revenue for its cloud services.

During the second quarter, it garnered less than 5 per cent market share, lagging behind Amazon, Microsoft and IBM, according to Synergy Research Group.

- Bloomberg