Lawyer

Networking and telecommunications companies were most likely to succeed as cloud computing providers, according to Gilbert & Tobin partner Peter Leonard.

Leonard highlighted several risks of enterprise cloud computing, including platform complexity, jurisdictional borders, infrastructure, third-party data access, and the potential insolvency of a cloud provider.

Telecommunications companies were also likely to succeed in the market, he said, since they had greatest control over the service delivery mechanism.

Optus in October launched its cloud solutions suite that offered customers "slices" of computing power and storage from a data centre in Sydney.

"Telecommunications carriers have particular advantages by managing all the parts of the infrastructure," Leonard mused.

"I think what we will increasingly see is telecommunications companies becoming either the primary cloud providers or entering into joint ventures with providers like Salesforce.com ... in order to support the delivery of service."

Leonard described cloud computing arrangements as "nothing more than an outsourcing contract" - with the added complexity of data that could be offshored and moved across international borders.