Google Cloud and Flipkart have partnered to help the Indian e-commerce company with innovation and its cloud strategy.

Flipkart, founded in 2007, has a registered customer base of over 400 million and offers over 150 million products across more than 80 categories. It claims to be one of India’s leading digital commerce entities.

Flipkart stated that it will scale on Google Cloud’s infrastructure to reach more customers. This will help the company deliver robust app access and performance, even during peak purchase seasons with heightened traffic. It will also build new products on the Google Cloud, helping it to expand into new markets in India.

The e-commerce company is also set to deploy Google Cloud’s data analytics and machine learning technologies, to help it better analyse traffic and transactional data, discover real-time insights into customer purchasing and shopping behaviour, and identify trends and patterns with increased demand.

Lastly, Flipkart will advance productivity and collaboration globally with Google Workspace. It aims to expand the tech giant’s platform to improve employees’ experience and connections.

«Our strategic alliance with Google Cloud will enable us to accelerate our digital transformation, power productivity and advance our innovation agenda,” said Jeyandran Venugopal, chief product and technology officer at Flipkart. “We are excited by Google Cloud’s unique strengths and experience in AI/ML and its proven scalability and security, all of which will be critical in our next phase of growth.»

Flipkart hopes that the partnership will propel it into its next phase of growth and advance its vision of onboarding India’s next 200 million shoppers and thousands of sellers.

«Flipkart’s growth in India has been powered by its digital-first strategy and forward-thinking approach to cloud technology,” said Bikram Singh Bedi, managing director of Google Cloud India. “As the company continues to scale and grow its e-commerce platform, we will work together to drive technological innovations and help Flipkart drive breakthrough businesses in the future.”

The news comes after Google Cloud recently invested in a new office in Pune, India. It said last month that it aims to open the location during the second half of 2022 and has already begun hiring for new positions. The teams located at the new office will help build advanced enterprise cloud technologies in collaboration with global engineering teams and deliver product and implementation expertise for digital transformation.​​

Microsoft has announced plans to establish its fourth data centre region in India in the city of Hyderabad in Telangana.

The company revealed that the investment aligns with its commitment to help customers thrive in a cloud and AI-enabled digital economy and will become part of the world’s largest cloud infrastructure.

The new data centre region in Hyderabad will complement the tech giant’s existing network of three regions across the country in Pune, Mumbai, and Chennai. It will offer Microsoft’s entire portfolio across the cloud, AI, productivity tools CRM with advanced data security, and more.

Microsoft said Telangana is emerging as a “challenger” in the Indian IT sector due to its software exports registering an increase of 7% year-on-year to reach $67.4 billion in 2021, citing a government report.

It added that it is partnering with the Telangana government to accelerate its adoption of cloud, AI, IoT, and cyber security tools for governance. This includes efforts to upskill government officials in next-generation technology, support young girls to build careers in cyber security through the CyberShikshaa programme, and partner on skilling programmes like DigiSaksham with the ministry of labour and employment to equip job seekers from rural areas with technical skills.

“Today’s commitment to the people and businesses of India will position the country among the world’s digital leaders,” said Rajeev Chandrasekhar, minister for Skill Development & Entrepreneurship and Electronics & Information Technology. “A Microsoft data center region provides a competitive advantage to our digital economy and is a long-term investment in our country’s potential.”

The new data centre region will also be built with sustainable design and operations in mind, the company said. This will help Microsoft responsibly deliver reliable and highly available cloud services at scale.

Microsoft underlined that customer demand for cloud as a platform for digital transformation, driving economic growth and societal progress across India, is increasing. Microsoft data centre regions in the country contributed $9.5 billion in revenue to the economy between 2016 and 2020, according to a Microsoft-sponsored IDC report. The report also estimated 1.5 million jobs were added to the economy, including 169,000 new skilled IT jobs.

Microsoft isn’t the only big tech firm with an interest in India, as Google Cloud announced in January that it would open a new office in Pune this year. This is part of its ongoing investment in the country after opening its second cloud region in the country last July. The new location will open in the second half of 2022, although the company has already started hiring for positions.

​Cisco has patched two critical bugs that could allow attackers to write files and run arbitrary code on its video conferencing and collaboration products.

Each bug affects the company’s Cisco Expressway series of collaboration servers and its TelePresence Video Communication Server (VCS).

The first vulnerability, CVE-2022-20754, allows a remote attacker to write files to the system. It lies in the products’ cluster database API, which doesn’t properly validate user input. This enables attackers to authenticate as an administrative user and then submit malicious input via a directory traversal attack. They could then write their own files with root privileges, including overwriting existing operating system files.

The second flaw, CVE-2022-20755, allows an attacker to execute arbitrary code by exploiting the products’ web management interface. An attacker could log in as an admin and then craft malicious input that would let them run their own code as root.

These vulnerabilities, each of which has a 9.0 CVSS score, do not depend on each other, Cisco said in its advisory. with customers being told to install both patches to protect their systems.

Cisco Expressway is a series of devices supporting collaboration with users outside of a company’s firewall. The system, which operates without the need for a VPN client, supports video, voice, and instant messaging. Users can also see each others’ presence information.

The TelePresence VCS is a server for managing video conferencing sessions. It works as an appliance on a customer’s premises or in the cloud, and supports communication between different video conferencing platforms.

TelePresence VCS has not been sold since December 2020. Cisco will stop issuing software maintenance patches for this product on December 29 this year and will stop providing support entirely at the end of 2023.

Microsoft Defender for Cloud users can access an early preview of Defender for Azure Cosmos DB, Microsoft announced on Tuesday.

Microsoft Defender for Cloud helps organizations identify and address weak points in their cloud infrastructure through cloud workload protection (CWP) and cloud security posture management (CSPM), the company said.

Defender for Azure Cosmos DB support has now been added to Microsoft Defender for Cloud, allowing for centralized management of database security across multiple cloud environments.

“Databases are constantly evolving to handle new use cases, incorporate more intelligence, and store more data, giving developers and organizations a wide range of database types to meet their varying needs,” commented Inbal Argov, senior product manager of Microsoft Defender for Cloud.

​“Because aspects including architecture, capabilities, configuration options, and authentication methods are unique to each database type, so are the security threats—requiring custom security measures and protection capabilities to address the most common threats across databases,” added Argov.

The new Defender for Azure Cosmos DB proactively monitors Azure Cosmos DB accounts and protects them from a range of attack vectors, including attacks made from the application layer, SQL injections, unusual access patterns, compromised identities, and malicious insiders. 

Threat detections are made using Microsoft Threat Intelligence, the Microsoft Defender SQL query analysis engine, and the Microsoft Defender behavioral models.

A fully managed NoSQL database, Azure Cosmos DB also helps facilitate non-relational data models with multiple SDKs and APIs, ultra-fast response times, and instant scalability.

The service can be enabled at either the subscription level or the resource level.

​Microsoft has announced that it will be delaying the planned price increase on Office 365 and Microsoft 365 products by a few weeks due to high demand for the services in the run up to the changes.

First announced in August 2021, the “substantive” price increases across a number of Modern Work products was due to come into effect on 1 March 2022.

Microsoft said the “transitional grace period” was implemented to “provide partners with additional lead time for adapting business processes”. It added that it does not believe partners will use the additional time to pull forward demand for the products.

All new commerce transactions will need to be submitted to Microsoft by no later than 14 March 2022 at 5 PM Pacific Daylight Time, or midnight at Coordinated Universal Time (UTC), in order to be eligible for the February 2022 pricing.

The price increases range between $1-$3 per user, depending on the product, but in large companies this can amount to a sizeable increase to IT departments’ overhead costs.

The six Modern Work products affected by the price changes include: 

• Microsoft 365 Business Basic: $6 per user per month, up from $5
• Microsoft 365 Business Premium: $22 per user per month, up from $20
• Office 365 E1: $10 per user per month, up from $8
• Office 365 E3: $23 per user per month, up from $20
• Office 365 E5: $38 per user per month, up from $35
• Microsoft 365 E3: $36 per user per month, up from $32

In the initial announcement, Microsoft said it represented the first major pricing adjustment for Office 365 and Microsoft 365 since it was launched in 2011, a decade previously.

Higher demand for cloud services brought on by the ongoing trend of home and hybrid working prompted the tech giant to make the change, said Jared Spataro, corporate vice president at Microsoft 365.

In December 2021, four months after the announced price increases, Microsoft also said it would be raising the prices of pay-monthly Microsoft 365 products by 20% unless partners chose to be billed on an annual basis.

Managed Service Providers (MSPs) complained at the time that they could stand to lose money if a customer went bankrupt or chose to decrease the number of licenses they needed if they opted for an annual subscription.

The move prompted heated online discussions and a Change.org petition lobbying Microsoft to reconsider the decision, which garnered more than 2,000 signatures.

AT&T and IBM have partnered to offer simulated environments for enterprises to test out AT&T’s 5G network capabilities alongside IBM’s artificial intelligence (AI) and hybrid cloud technologies.

The firms noted businesses across all industries, including the public sector, manufacturing, and financial services can leverage IBM-AT&T’s strategic alliance to improve business outcomes and boost customer satisfaction. 

Enterprises can also address critical challenges such as supply chain disruptions and cyber threats through the jointly offered simulation centre located at IBM Bethesda Lab.  The environment is envisioned to serve as a testbed for varied technologies including secure cellular and cloud computing.

For instance, manufacturers can implement “safety zones” through video intelligence to identify product anomalies and improve inventory management.

Furthermore, IBM Yorktown, the headquarters for IBM Research, is now integrated with AT&T 5G to facilitate a co-branded customer showcase and 5G innovation centre, incorporating IBM and Red Hat industry solutions and offerings.  

At AT&T’s 5G Innovation Studio in Plano, TX, IBM and AT&T are working together to bring AI and machine learning (ML) to network insights to improve IT, OT, IoT, and 5G network visibility.

Open hybrid cloud computing in a low-latency, private cellular network edge environment is yet another joint offering by AT&T and IBM.

According to AT&T’s blog post, “using the network strength of AT&T and IBM Cloud Satellite, the two companies are helping enterprise clients get faster, improved data analysis by accessing data where it resides. As workloads shift to the edge, IBM Cloud Satellite will help clients deliver low latency, while still maintaining security, data privacy, interoperability and open standards found in hybrid cloud environments.” 

Zoom reported impressive earnings for the fourth quarter of 2021 on Monday, but shares of the company fell precipitously following its weak outlook for Q1.

In contrast to the impressive growth the video conferencing firm recorded at the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, Zoom’s latest earnings pale even as it pursues larger enterprise clients. 

Zoom reported a non-GAAP net income per share of $1.29 for Q4 2021. Revenue for the full fiscal year totalled $4,099.9 million, up 55% year over year, while revenue for the fourth quarter amounted to $1,071.4 million, up 21%.

Zoom’s board of directors also authorized a program to buy back up to $1 billion of Zoom’s outstanding Class A common stock.

Acquisition of new customers and expanding sales across existing customers accounted for the bulk of Zoom’s Q4 revenue. By the end of the quarter, the firm had 2,725 customers contributing over $100,000 in trailing 12-month revenue, up approximately 66% from the previous quarter.

However, enterprise clients take centre stage. Zoom served approximately 191,000 enterprise customers at the end of Q4, a 35% year-over-year increase. 

For Q1 2023, Zoom expects total revenue to range from $1.07 billion to $1.075 billion. Non-GAAP diluted earnings per share (EPS) are expected to range from 86 to 88 cents with approximately 309 million non-GAAP-weighted average shares outstanding.

For the full fiscal year 2023, total revenue is expected to range between $4.530 billion and $4.550 billion, and non-GAAP income from operations is expected to vary between $1.430 billion and $1.450 billion. A non-GAAP diluted EPS of approximately $3.45 to $3.51 is expected for the entire fiscal year based on approximately 312 million non-GAAP weighted average shares outstanding.

 “Looking forward, we are addressing a large opportunity as we expect customers will continue to transform how they work and engage with their customers,» said Zoom founder and CEO, Eric S. Yuan. «It is apparent that businesses want a full communications platform that is integrated, secure, and easy to use.

«We are proud to lead the charge of the digital transformation for communications. To sustain and enhance our leadership position, in fiscal year 2023 we plan to build out our platform to further enrich the customer experience with new cloud-based technologies and expand our go-to-market motions, which we believe will enable us to drive future growth.”

Amazon Web Services (AWS) has announced its new customer carbon footprint tool as part of The Climate Pledge.

The move builds on the firm’s commitment to achieving net zero carbon emissions by 2040, ten years ahead of the Paris Agreement. 

AWS’ customer carbon footprint tool, available for free, will help its cloud customers keep track of, measure, review, and forecast the carbon emissions associated with their use of AWS services. 

Enterprises can also monitor changes in emissions levels as they migrate workloads to AWS, upgrade applications, or retire obsolete resources. As a general rule, emissions are measured in metric tons of carbon dioxide equivalent, or MTCO2e. Carbon emissions data in the customer carbon footprint tool adhere to the Greenhouse Gas Protocol and ISO standards.

Emissions data is available from January 2020 onwards, according to AWS’ customer carbon footprint user guide.  There is a quarterly interval between data updates as AWS gathers and processes new information. The customer carbon footprint tool rounds all values to the nearest tenth of a metric ton.

To estimate emissions savings versus an equivalent on-premises workload, AWS draws upon data from 451 Research, which is a part of S&P Global Market Intelligence.

“After I share information about our efforts to decarbonize with our customers, they tell me that their organization is on a similar path, and that they need to know more about the carbon footprint of their cloud infrastructure,» commented Jeff Barr, chief evangelist for AWS. 

«Today I am happy to announce the new Customer Carbon Footprint Tool. This tool will help you to meet your own sustainability goals, and is available to all AWS customers at no cost,.

Cloudflare has announced that it is acquiring US-based email security provider Area 1 for $162 million (£120.8 million) in cash and stocks combined.

The deal is expected to close in the second quarter of 2022, and comes five months after the web infrastructure and website security company announced its foray into the email security market.

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Founded in 2013, Area 1 employs 97 staff members and has been credited with blocking over 40 million malicious phishing campaigns in 2021.

Commenting on the news, Area 1 Security CEO and president Patrick Sweeney said that phishing can be attributed as a cause of “more than 90% of cyber security damages”.

«By combining our leading phishing protection and threat intelligence capabilities with Cloudflare’s global network, data capabilities, and Zero Trust platform we truly believe that together we can help companies of any size better secure their entire network infrastructure and better protect against the most destructive cyber risks,” he added.

Cloudflare co-founder and CEO Matthew Prince described email as “the largest cyber attack vector on the Internet”, before adding that the acquisition of Area 1 will allow Cloudflare to become a “clear leader in Zero Trust”.

“To us, the future of Zero Trust includes an integrated, one-click approach to securing all of an organisation’s applications, including its most ubiquitous cloud application, email. Together, we expect we’ll be delivering the fastest, most effective, and most reliable email security on the market,” he said.

The $162 million acquisition, out of which 40-50% is estimated to be paid in class A stocks, is expected to be one of the most expensive deals in Cloudflare company history. The company has made eight acquisitions to-date – financial details of which hadn’t been made publicly available.

The purchase of Area 1’s business comes only two weeks after Cloudflare announced the acquisition of Vectrix for an undisclosed amount, in an effort to bolster its Zero Trust software-as-a-service security offering.

In September 2021, Cloudflare announced two new services, which marked its entrance into the email security industry: custom domain tool Cloudflare Email Routing and the Email Security DNS Wizard, which protects businesses from phishing and spoofing attacks.

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The global cloud computing market is projected to reach a valuation of $1.95 trillion by 2032, according to a new report from market intelligence firm Fact.MR.

A compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 15% is anticipated for the market between 2022 and 2032, owing to the rapid digitization of workplaces and the increasing demand for software as a service (SaaS) applications.

Commenting on the 12% CAGR of cloud-based services from 2015 to 2021, Fact.MR said the COVID-19 pandemic spurred the adoption of cloud computing, as enterprises enforced widespread work from home policies. 

With the proliferation of infrastructure as a service (IaaS), platform as a service (PaaS), and SaaS-based solutions, the market for cloud computing has grown significantly. Adobe, Alibaba Group, and Amazon are among the top market players. 

Accordingly, cloud computing solutions in North America are expected to account for 40% of the global revenue in 2022. The region is dominated by global technology giants like Microsoft, Oracle, and Amazon, who have been early adopters of cloud technology, including big data analytics, Internet of Things (IoT), additive manufacturing, artificial intelligence (AI), virtual reality (VR), augmented reality (AR), and machine learning, all of which have vastly impacted the market.

With a CAGR of 18%, the APAC market is forecast to grow the fastest during the forecast period. Emerging economies such as India and China are likely to contribute to the growth in the region.

For instance, Alibaba Group’s fast-paced expansion and Make in India initiatives have been notable factors facilitating market size growth in the APAC region. A number of cloud computing service providers, including Amazon, Microsoft, and Google LLP, have also initiated plans to strengthen their presence in Thai and Indonesian markets.

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