IBM与SAP将联手打造企业云计算
IBM首席执行官吉尼•罗梅蒂与SAP首席执行官比尔•麦克德莫特
|
IBM和SAP近日宣布，双方将合作，携手向企业提供云计算服务。 其中，IBM将向SAP提供云基础架构服务，而SAP则将使用IBM的基础架构运行HANA企业云应用。 对于IBM来说，这也是它今年第二次与科技行业的重量级企业在云计算领域进行合作。今年７月，IBM宣布将与苹果公司（Apple）合作，向企业客户销售手机和平板电脑（以及相关应用与服务）。 对于SAP来说，与IBM的结盟有利于助推其现有应用的全球销售。同时也等于承认了它最近才建设完成的数据中心还不足以满足公司的宏伟蓝图。 SAP的商务拓展负责人凯文•伊克普拉尼指出：“SAP已经确实转变成一家云应用和云平台公司。我们的目标是成为一家以HANA驱动的云公司。” SAP公司总部位于德国的瓦尔多夫，它是欧洲最大的软件公司，与IBM的合作也是它领先甲骨文（Oracle）等竞争对手的一种方式。相比之下，甲骨文公司为了吸引企业选择自家的云应用而自行建设了一个数据中心网络。目前SAP已经收购了SuccessFactors（人力资本管理应用）、Ariba（采购应用），对Concur（差旅及报销管理应用）的收购很快也将完成。伊克普拉尼指出，HANA企业云现在已经拥有大约4000名客户，而运行SAP企业软件套装的公司大约有11倍之多。 伊克普拉尼表示：“我们需要快速建立起全球级的规模，IBM宣布他们的数据中心今年将达到40个，这对我们非常有吸引力。” 目前，各大公司的IT部门正好也到达了一个拐点。多年以来，数据一直存储在企业拥有的服务器上，在企业内部运作，所以又叫“内部服务器”。随着云计算的兴起，数据开始转移到第三方供应商，如IBM或亚马逊（Amazon）提供并运营的服务器上，在规模效应下，大大降低了数据成本。同时由于软件不再是电脑上的一个程序，而是变成了一种可以随时在互联网上读取的服务，因此也提高了应用的灵活性。 目前，许多公司越来越青睐所谓的“混合云”，也就是部分数据存储在本地电脑上，部分数据存储在云端。有些不愿意将数据完全存储到云端的企业已经选择了这种做法。有些公司以前觉得云计算只适合用来评估研发中的软件，即是一种“测试环境”；现在他们认为云计算已经成熟，适合用于生产，也就是所谓的“生产环境”。IBM公司的全球技术服务部负责人埃里克•克莱蒙蒂表示，IBM希望凭借它的SoftLayer主机服务帮助企业满足这种需求。 他表示：“我们发现需求已经有了很大的提升，现在用户想把生产环境移动到云端的意愿和胃口都在呈指数级增长。” 克莱蒙蒂表示，IBM力求成为最受企业青睐的云平台。与SAP进行合作既是合理的选择（IBM表示它自己正是SAP全球最大的客户），同时也能够产生额外的业务。“SAP会吸引一系列其它的相关应用、服务和集成。对我们来说，在企业生产方面积累足够的人气和商誉是极为重要的。随着时间的推移，越来越多的服务都会通过云端来提供。我认为广大企业都会见证这一点——而这次合作将使它变得更可靠。” 克莱蒙蒂补充道：“我们可以说是强强联手”。伊克普拉尼用另一种说法表达了类似的意思——“我们朝着同一个目标而努力。”(财富中文网) 译者：朴成奎 |
IBM and SAP plan to announce on Tuesday that they will partner to offer cloud computing services to companies. Specifically, IBM IBM 0.15% will provide cloud infrastructure services to SAP, which will run its business applications—collectively dubbed the HANA Enterprise Cloud—on top of them. For IBM, it’s the second megawatt deal of the year with a technology industry peer as it continues to stake ground through large cloud computing partnerships. In July, it announced it would partner with AppleAAPL -1.06% to sell phones and tablets (and related applications and services) to business customers. For SAP, it’s an acceleration of an existing strategy to offer its applications worldwide—and a small concession that the data center buildout it recently completed wasn’t sufficient to meet its larger goal. “SAP has really morphed as a company to a cloud application and platform company,” says Kevin Ichhpurani, SAP’s head of business development. “Our goal is to be the cloud company powered by HANA.” Walldorf, Germany-based SAP, the largest software company in Europe, sees a partnership with its American counterpart as a way to outrun rivals like Oracle ORCL 0.60% , which has chosen to build its own network of data centers, in the race to get businesses to adopt cloud applications. For SAP, that includes SuccessFactors (for human capital management), Ariba (for procurement), and soon, Concur (for travel and expenses). There are currently about 4,000 HANA customers, Ichhpurani says, and eleven times as many companies running SAP’s business software suite. “We needed to really build global scale instantaneously,” Ichhpurani says. “IBM has announced that they’ll get to 40 data centers in the year. That’s really attractive to us.” The deal comes at a significant turning point for the information technology departments of major companies. For years, data resided on servers that the company owned and operated within its own facilities, referred to as “on premise.” With the rise of cloud computing, that data began to migrate to servers owned and operated by third-party providers (such as IBM or Amazon) but rented by the company in question. The appeal? Lower cost at scale and flexibility as software has transformed into a service you access anytime on the Internet rather than a program you launch from a local computer. The answer for many companies is increasingly the “hybrid cloud,” where some data resides locally and other data lives in the cloud. Firms that have been reluctant to move their data to the cloud have begun to do so. Companies that once saw the cloud as fit only for evaluating software in development—for “testing environments”—now see it suitable for hosting the real deal, referred to as “production environments.” Armonk, N.Y.-based IBM, through its SoftLayer business, wants to be there to meet that need, says Erich Clementi, the leader of IBM’s Global Technology Services group. “We’ve seen a massive uptick in terms of demand,” he says. “The desire now for customers to move their production landscapes to the cloud, that appetite, is growing exponentially.” IBM deeply desires to be the preferred cloud platform for the enterprise, Clementi says. Doing a deal with SAP is both logical—IBM says it is the largest SAP practice in the world—and appealing in terms of generating additional business. “SAP attracts a whole host of other connected applications, services, integrations,” Clementi says. “For us, gaining critical mass and credibility for enterprise production is paramount. Over time, more and more services are going to be delivered in a cloud manner. I think the enterprises will watch and see—and I think this deal makes it credible.” “We can be the handshake,” Clementi adds. Ichhpurani puts it another way: “A single throat to choke.” |
