Readily available green energy and high-speed connectivity is allowing private and hybrid cloud providers in the Nordics to deliver a growing portfolio of services to meet enterprise needs, according to a new research report published by Information Services Group.
The report – ‘2022 ISG Provider Lens Next-Gen Private/Hybrid Cloud Data Center Services and Solutions’ – finds sustainable energy at low rates is helping Nordic providers both contain costs and support enterprises’ increasingly important environmental, social and governance (ESG) initiatives. The ample supply of high-speed, low-latency network links to major European data centres adds to the strength of Nordic providers’ offerings.
“Connectivity and sustainability are high on the list of what many enterprises want from cloud providers,” said Anna Medkouri, partner, technology modernisation, ISG EMEA. “The leading Nordic providers are well-positioned to deliver those benefits.”
Fast, secure and reliable networks help data centre operators in the Nordics establish edge computing managed services and managed hosting solutions in the region, the report says. In most cases, the data centre providers are network-agnostic, giving their clients choice and flexibility.
Enterprises in the region are motivated to use alternative energy sources and reduce their carbon footprints, in some cases by government programs, such as tax incentives in Sweden, ISG says. Providers are moving in the same direction. For example, one provider in Denmark has begun using offshore wind power to run its data centres, and others are recovering waste heat from their facilities to heat nearby homes.
In addition, Nordic enterprises are turning to service providers for assistance in deploying technologies that improve operations and help them achieve their goals. More providers are considering automation tools such as AI, bots, machine learning and software-defined infrastructure to support their managed services. Also, with the emergence of the European GDPR law and other data standards, Nordic governments and non-governmental organisations are increasingly interested in establishing sovereign clouds.
“Data management and privacy concerns are reshaping the cloud strategies of highly sensitive organisations,” said Jan Erik Aase, partner and global leader, ISG Provider Lens Research. “Many Nordic service providers are stepping up with sovereign cloud managed services.”
