Taiwanese govt joins Microsoft in the cloud

TAIPEI, Taiwan - Taiwan's government will invest 24 billion New Taiwan dollars (NZ$1.05bn) in cloud-based computing over the next five years, as a complement to Microsoft's support for local firms to develop and use the new technology.

Vice Economics Minister Lin Sheng-chung said the Cabinet has approved the investment plan that could streamline public services and generate numerous business opportunities for local companies.

Cloud computing involves running applications in web browsers instead of installing them on individual hard drives. The information entered in the programs also is stored in data centres run by third parties such as Google.

The cloud allows companies to store and retrieve data over the internet whenever they need it instead of saving it on their own computers, resulting in sizable savings.

- AP