Global public cloud spend to hit $160 billion in 2018

Discrete manufacturing, professional services and banking are set to lead the way in the 2018 global public cloud spend. Soaring interest in public cloud services has prompted a prediction that a huge $160 billion will be spent in 2018, marking a 23.2 per cent increase over 2017. The IDC forecast also predicts that public cloud services market will achieve a five-year compound annual growth rate of 21.9 per cent. This would place global public cloud spending at $277 billion in 2021. Eileen Smith, program director, Customer Insights and Analysis, IDC, said: “The industries that are spending the most – discrete manufacturing, professional services, and banking – are the ones that have come to recognize the tremendous benefits that can be gained from public cloud services. Organizations within these industries are leveraging public cloud services to quickly develop and launch 3rd Platform solutions, such as big data and analytics and the Internet of Things (IoT), that will enhance and optimize the customer’s journey and lower operational costs.”