SEACOM has welcomed Microsoft’s plans to build hyperscale data centres in Cape Town and Johannesburg, saying it will boost cloud adoption in South Africa.

Microsoft will use local data centres to deliver a range of cloud services from 2018, including Microsoft Azure, Office 365, and Dynamics 365.

Robert Marston, ‎Global Head of Product at SEACOM, said the development is set to give a huge boost to enterprise adoption of infrastructure-as-a-service, software-as-a-service, and other cloud services.

Microsoft’s data centres will offer South African companies a much better performance and lower latencies than the current situation, where its services are hosted internationally.

“It will also lower the cost barrier for adoption of these services for enterprise customers,” said Marston.

Many enterprises have chosen private clouds or to work with local public cloud providers that lack the capabilities of the world’s top cloud computing providers, he said.

Enterprises will soon be able to enjoy the full Azure experience with no performance compromises or hefty data charges.

With Microsoft hosting its cloud services locally, it is only a matter of time before other providers set up data centres in Africa, said Marston.

“The investment from Microsoft is a signal that the cloud market in South Africa and the rest of Africa has come of age.”

Source My Broadband