IT Support | Does iCloud equal iEnterprise?
Posted by The Blogging Desk on Mon, Jun 20, 2011
Software Advice:
Google is one of Apple’s top competitors. The god of the search engines already has a presence in the enterprise space via its Google apps. For example, here at Software Advice we use Google apps, such as Gmail and Google docs, for much of our collaboration efforts. We, of course, run all of these on our fancy Mac desktops.
While the verdict is still out on which is cooler, Google or Apple, it’s fair to say that neither company has made a large effort in terms of the enterprise market. (So far.) Will iCloud be the game changer?
Given Apple’s power plays across other devices, I could easily see them step to the forefront to leave their mark in the enterprise space. They could start off by capitalizing on their stronghold in the creative industries and education, targeting enterprise businesses in those areas. But unless Apple addresses some core issues, their latest roll out could turn into a dark cloud.
Great all around points by Lauren, so do check out the entire article.
Many folks are indeed curious about whether or not Apple will finally cause a stir in the Enterprise scene with regards to Microsoft and possibly even Google. Microsoft as of now essentially owns the Enterprise game. No question about it. Google is starting to make a push with their Google Chrome OS, but has already made a dent thanks to their Google Apps suite. Even if you don't go all-in with Google Apps, you can still utilize the Office suite of apps to make sure your files mingle with others.
As a user, I'm excited with regards to iCloud in that I won't have to sync my iOS devices in order to backup or even to get certain songs or apps onto both my iPhone and iPad. Right now, when creating and editing documents, I don't use Pages, which is Apple's version of Microsoft Word. I use a third-party app called PlainText and even then, I use another third-party service to sync those Text files - Dropbox. For the casual user, that option is quite complicated. That's where I see iCloud making a difference.
Pages would then allow a user to create a document and have that file match all of your other devices inside of the cloud. You wouldn't need to worry about signing up for Dropbox and tracking the file down on the web or otherwise, it will just show up inside of your apps and on your Mac. It's likely that Apple will release this API for similar apps to use iCloud when storing this date, but that last part is really where Apple's vision is separate from Microsoft. At least for now.
Apple's iCloud really banks on your using an iOS device or a Mac. Recent reports are muddy that their web-interface version will even show up in September. Let's say you create a new Pages document on your iPad and would like to edit that on your work desktop which is Windows 7. Right now, that may not even be possible unless you email that file to yourself. That's not so futuristic. Apple wants you in their eco-system entirely to get all of their goodies they offer. iCloud is free, sure. But how much did you pay for that Mac mini, or iPad? That's where their profit comes in.
Lauren goes on:
Companies not only need their systems to play well together, but also their teams of employees. One of the perks my company enjoys with Google docs is the ability to create, edit and share documents across the organization. However, it appears that iCloud’s automatic syncing guarantees interaction with your own information, not others. This ignores one of the biggest incentives of choosing to operate in the cloud: the ability to share information between individuals and/or groups across multiple networks. The device syncing is desirable, but it falls short of wide-scale enterprise needs.
Apple would love to make money from the Enterprise, but for now, they're happy with getting individual users locked into their eco-system. If you work at a company that has Windows everything - iCloud won't matter to you. Even if you work at a company that has started to phase in iPads for some light remote usage, iCloud won't matter to you.
I really think Apple is happy with Windows and possibly even Google figuring out the Enterprise market. Once their hands are firmly around small to mid-sized businesses, Apple will probably step in and show just how easy it could be if those same businesses went all-in with Apple hardware and services.
Plus, have you ever tried to talk about Apple products with a guy that lives in Microsoft OneNote? It makes you want to jump out of the nearest window. I suppose we're still a few years out from having Steve Jobs prevent me from jumping out of that window.
