Japan has once again topped the rankings in the Cloud Readiness Index (CRI), an annual study of Asia-Pacific economies' preparedness for cloud computing by the Asia Cloud Computing Association (ACCA).
In this the second Index, Japan ranked ahead of South Korea, Hong Kong and Singapore, scoring highest in the categories of International Connectivity and Business Sophistication, and equal highest in Data Privacy and Freedom of Information Access.
Taiwan finished fifth, just behind Singapore, mainland China ranked tenth, Australia finished in the middle of the table and Thailand and Vietnam tied at the bottom.
The Index tracks the development of the required underlying infrastructure, data regulations, and the business and government environment for cloud computing across leading Asian economies.
In a few short years, cloud computing has become an important part of the knowledge economy and is certain to become one of the biggest drivers of economic growth over the next decade.
Researchers: Strong cloud growth
Research firm Gartner has predicted public cloud services to be worth $109 billion this year, while IDC estimates that by 2015 the cloud will create 14 million jobs worldwide and $1.1 trillion a year in new business revenues. The EU expects the cloud to add as much as €160 billion ($206 billion) to annual GDP between now and 2020, which represents more than 2% of GDP growth.
Cloud services have become enabled by the widespread deployment of fixed and mobile broadband networks and the mass availability of smartphones and tablets. Using the cloud, businesses, governments and other organizations can deliver content, databases and applications in a more cost-effective and flexible way.
“There is wide recognition among Asian governments and business leaders about the importance of the cloud in driving innovation, cutting costs and boosting productivity,” said Bernie Trudel, Chairman of the ACCA.