TDS' Team Cos. debuts new Fitchburg data center

Construction was completed in December, nevertheless Team Cos. has been designing and installing equipment to offer "cloud" computing services, starting in late August.

Traditionally, a business leases equipment and space in a data center on a long-term basis however the client manages its own information, using its own computers and software, said Bill Koch, director of sales for Wisconsin and northern Illinois for TDS Hosted and Managed Services, which includes data centers.

The functions out of a customer's hands

Cloud computing moves the functions out of a customer's hands and locates them "in the cloud" - that is, off-site, cutting expenses for equipment and maintenance. "We buy the software and equipment, and they lease it," Koch said. "The whole capital forecasting issue becomes moot for them."

He said terms for customers are much more flexible for cloud computing. "They may only use it for a few weeks' time or a few months' time," Koch said.

Since March 2010, Madison-based TDS Telecommunications has spent more than $170 million acquiring four companies to be part of its Hosted and Managed Services Division.

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