Tokyo, October 27, 2010 – Cloud adoption, awareness and understanding has accelerated sharply among Japanese organizations during the last 12 months, finds the latest “Cloud Computing in Japan 2010 - End-User Adoption Trends” report from Springboard Research, a leading innovator in the IT Market Research industry. Springboard Research revealed that the current Cloud adoption rate in Japan is 13% and the average understanding level of Japanese respondents was the highest in Asia at 6.9 (based on a 10-point scale with 10 being highest), versus an average rating of 5.6 across Asia Pacific excluding Japan (APEJ).

Large Organizations are Aggressive Adopters

The Springboard Research’s report found that Cloud adoption varies widely by organization size. Organizations with 10,000 or more employees are the most aggressive adopters with a Cloud adoption rate of 36%, which is nearly triple the average overall adoption rate of 13%.

Among the vertical industries, telecom, IT, finance, and government sectors are most bullish in terms of Cloud adoption.

“Cloud adoption and awareness have increased rapidly across Japan, with particularly strong growth among larger organizations”, says Masami Kashiwagi, Research Manager, Japan at Springboard Research. “Nonetheless, security remains a primary Cloud-related concern across Japan, outweighing concerns over data privacy, residency or loss of control as well as integration”, added Ms. Kashiwagi. 

Cost Reduction is the Primary Benefit of Cloud Adoption 

The Springboard Research report found that organizations in Japan perceive Cloud as particularly relevant for reducing costs. Almost half of the respondents (47%) cited reduction in hardware infrastructure costs as the top benefit of Cloud Computing while IT staff/administrative cost reductions and scalability were the second most popular benefits (both cited 33% by respondents).  Additionally, 42% of the respondents admitted that their attention towards cloud computing has increased because of the economy.

“Cost saving has been a convincing reason for early adopters to make investment decision on Cloud-related projects.  However, strategic objectives should be increasingly considered, which should help improving operational efficiency, competitiveness in the market, and ultimately the company’s sustainable value in the long term“, advised Ms. Kashiwagi.

International Vendors Win Customer Mindshare 

Among the vendors, Japanese respondents identified Google as the leader in terms of Cloud mindshare, followed by IBM and Microsoft whereas NEC, Fujitsu and NTT Data dominate the local Japanese vendor landscape. In fact, 18% of respondents were unable to name a leader while Google was the only vendor to score higher. Vendor landscape in terms of customer mindshare may dynamically change in the coming months.

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About this Report

The Springboard Research report - “Cloud Computing in Japan 2010 – End-User Adoption Trends” - highlights the end user adoption trends of Cloud Computing in Japan. The insights in the report were derived from Web-based survey with CIOs, IT managers and line of business managers. The survey includes an initial screening of 3,578 organizations who answered questions specifically targeting their Cloud adoption status.  After the initial survey screening, 259 qualified respondents completed the entire Cloud Computing questionnaire, which covered Cloud understanding, perceived benefits and concerns, and vendor mindshare, (among others).  

About Springboard Research

With visionaries others pursue, methods others neglect and ideas others don’t consider, Springboard Research not only seeks to lead an industry – we seek to transform it. Leveraging our pioneering research model and industry thought leaders, Springboard provides greater insight, analysis, and innovation specific to global emerging markets. Working with leading technology vendors, IT professionals, and local channels, Springboard helps our clients lead, rather than follow, market trends.

Springboard Research has a global presence with research centers in Australia, China, India, Japan, Malaysia, Pakistan, Singapore, the UAE, and the US. We have been acknowledged as an emerging leader and for the last three years been named a “Rising Star” in the global IT market research industry by Outsell, the leading research and advisory firm for the information industry. For more information and access to Springboard’s research, please visit www.springboardresearch.com

Media Contacts

Jeanne Chai, Marketing Manager
Springboard Research
65-6325-9863         
[email protected]  

Masami Kashiwagi, Japan Research Manager
Springboard Research
81-3-6868-4898        
[email protected]