EDITOR’S QUESTION
WHAT IS THE
CURRENT OUTLOOK
OF THE PUBLIC CLOUD
MARKET IN AFRICA?
EMEA spending on public cloud to reach nearly $34 billion in 2019, says IDC
S
pending on public cloud services
in Europe, the Middle East, and
Africa (EMEA) reached $15.1
billion in 2015. According to data
recently released by International
Data Corporation (IDC), spending is
expected to more than double over the
next five years, reaching nearly $34
billion in 2019.
In EMEA as a whole, spending on public
cloud services is forecast to record a
compound annual growth rate (CAGR)
of 20.5% from 2015 to 2019, although
this varies by region and by country
within the region.
While Western Europe currently
accounts for more than 90% of the
total public cloud spending in EMEA,
the Middle East and Africa is the most
dynamic, growing faster than either
Western Europe or Central and Eastern
Europe (CEE).
Broken down by technology, Software
as a Service (SaaS) will comprise the
largest share of public cloud services
in EMEA, accounting for over 60% of
total public cloud market value through
the 2015–2019 forecast period.
Spending on Infrastructure as a Service
www.intelligentcio.com
(IaaS) and Platform as a Service (PaaS)
will post five-year CAGRs of 22.2% and
26.7%, respectively.
Spending by industries and size
segments have clearly visible trends that
differ according to EMEA sub-region.
Large and very large businesses account
for the more than half of public cloud
revenue in EMEA, while in CEMA, small-
and medium-sized businesses (SMBs)
are the biggest contributors to overall
spending, with almost 60% share.
From an industry perspective, discrete
manufacturers spend the most on public
cloud services in Western Europe, and
professional services are the largest
investors in public cloud in CEMA.
“Overall, in Western Europe, adoption
of public cloud solutions is on the rise,
with discrete manufacturing companies
showing both high adoption rates and
above-average investment plans for
the next 12 months. Other industries
growing strongly include utilities and
retail,” says Angela Vacca, Research
Manager with IDC. “Interest is also
rising among SMBs, as more tailored
solutions are now available, and
these companies need innovative
technologies to compete.”
In CEMA, adoption of various forms of
cloud will be increasing, as a growing
number of end user organisations
are currently deploying or at least
evaluating cloud deployment. Cloud is
becoming the underpinning technology
for other 3rd platform technologies
and delivery models, such as big data/
analytics, mobility, social media, and
IoT. “The increasing role of line of
business stakeholders supports cloud
penetration,” says Vladimir Kroa,
Associate Vice President at IDC CEMA.
“Professional services organisations,
retail businesses, and educational
institutes have been early adopters;
however, growth will accelerate in
discrete manufacturing and government
sectors in the near future.”
The Worldwide Semiannual Public Cloud
Services Spending Guide quantifies
public cloud computing purchases
by cloud type for 20 industries across
eight regions and 54 countries. Unlike
any other research in the industry, the
comprehensive spending guide was
designed to help IT decision makers to
clearly understand the industry specific
scope and direction of public cloud
services spending today and over the
next five years. n
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