According to a survey conducted in August 2023, more than 50 percent of companies in Japan stated that they had already fully implemented cloud computing services. An additional 27.1 percent of businesses answered that they had implemented cloud services in some offices or departments.

Japan's cloud market

The domestic market size of cloud services in Japan, encompassing infrastructure as a service (IaaS) and platform as a service (PaaS), was estimated at 1.94 trillion yen in 2023. This figure is projected to nearly double by 2027. Notably, cloud services gained considerable traction in the telecommunication, finance, and insurance industries, with the vast majority of companies across these sectors adopting them. A breakdown of the utilization rate of cloud services revealed that larger companies tend to embrace cloud services more readily than their smaller counterparts.

Cloud-AI integration

As generative AI gains traction, cloud vendors are swiftly integrating it into their services, enhancing offerings for user companies. This strategic move not only boosts the appeal of cloud services but also facilitates easier adoption through managed cloud services. Leading cloud providers offer platforms for developing foundation models, while incorporating conversational AI chatbots and other AI aids into their cloud services to effectively assist users. However, a survey in Japan revealed a certain hesitancy among respondents to place too much trust in artificial intelligence, despite acknowledging its utility and potential to alleviate labor shortages.

According to a survey conducted in South Korea in 2023, around 81 percent of cloud users stated that they used cloud services for data and information management purposes. Another popular purpose, with about 51 percent of respondents utilizing cloud services for this reason, was the editing documents.

As of 2024, over 60 percent of businesses worldwide currently used data warehouse services of public cloud providers. Additionally, 32 percent are experimenting with machine learning/AI, and 17 percent are planning to implement it along with DRaaS and Edge services.

More than 97 percent of companies in Japan with a capital stock of five billion Japanese yen or more used cloud services in 2023. The cloud utilization rate was lower among companies with a smaller capital size.

As of 2024, around 67 percent of global enterprises currently used data warehouse service of public cloud providers. Additionally, over 30 percent of enterprises experimented with machine learning/AI.

According to the latest report, 80 percent of enterprise respondents indicated that they were adopting Microsoft Azure for public cloud usage. AWS, Microsoft Azure, and Google Cloud, also known as hyperscalers, are among the leading cloud computing platform providers worldwide. Public cloud A public cloud refers to a computing service offered by a provider over the public internet whereby computing resources are made available to the customer. These resources may include storage capabilities, virtual machines, or applications. The customer only pays for resources actually consumed, such as bandwidth or CPU cycles. For organizations, this can lead to cost reduction versus having to buy and maintain on-premises hardware. Cloud computing benefits Cloud adoption is driven by several factors, including increased efficiency, quick deployment, and security. Because cloud providers offer customers to deploy their workloads from many locations globally, latency is reduced, which in turn enhances the customer experience. In addition, cloud-based services are more resilient, as the failure of a virtual machine does not necessarily mean that service availability is negatively impacted. To reap the most benefits, organizations are assessing which cloud models fit their case best and looking to pursue hybrid cloud strategies in the future, which includes the integration of both public and private clouds.

Telecommunications companies in Japan had a cloud utilization rate of more than 93 percent in 2023, which was the highest utilization rate among industries. The telecommunications industry was followed by the finance and insurance industry, the real estate industry, and the construction industry.

In 2024, around 98 percent of responding companies stated that they already used cloud services (private or public cloud). This was a significant increase compared to earlier years. Cloud computing is essential to IT around the world.

In 2021, 56 percent of respondents stated that they are using Microsoft Azure for their cloud services. Amazon Web Services (AWS) was on top of the list until 2020, when Microsoft took the place. Additionally, the percentage of respondents not using any form of cloud rose to eight percent in 2022 from four percent in 2021. Microsoft Azure, AWS and Google Cloud are the key players Among the reasons for the popularity of Microsoft Azure, AWS, and Google Cloud is their global cloud infrastructure. These vendors are a prominent choice for organizations as they provide cloud on-ramp services in data centers around the world while ensuring high security standards and achieving great levels of reliability. Further, private cloud takes the third place, meaning that organizations use a cloud computing environment that is dedicated entirely to that organization alone. What are the vendors’ key strengths? One of AWS’ key strengths is its wide variety of services, including storage, analytics, networking, developer tools, security, and enterprise applications, among others. This broad product portfolio makes AWS a great choice for customers seeking to boost developer functionality. Microsoft Azure, on the other hand, is a popular choice due to its combination of Azure, Teams, and Office 365, making it a good fit with all enterprise computing needs in a single place. Finally, Google Cloud’s hallmark is its expertise around open-source technologies, such as container technology, which makes Google’s offering compelling to customers who prioritize digital transformation. Importantly, these vendors continuously expand their repertoire of technologies and partners to offer customers a wide range of solutions for different use cases.

In 2020, 68 percent of Finnish companies used public cloud services. Public cloud refers to data being stored in the provider’s shared data center. Public cloud services were most frequently used in the information and communication sector and professional, scientific and technical activities, where 91 percent of companies had public cloud solutions in use.

By 2020, it is projected that 68 percent of organizations will make use of managed cloud infrastructure services, a two-fold increase from 2018. Managed cloud services help organizations with tasks like workload assessment and placements, hybrid cloud integration, etc. CenturyLink and Rackspace are two of the largest managed cloud service providers.

In 2024, 49 percent of respondents are already running significant workloads on Amazon Web Services (AWS). Cloud computing as-a-service One of the most prevalent ways for companies to utilize cloud computing is to take advantage of the various “as-a-service” options available from many of the world’s largest tech companies. These services provide organizations with access to computing power, software, and other cloud-related functions without the need for in-house hardware. The software-as-a-service market alone is expected to grow well past the 232 billion U.S. dollar mark by 2020, while the infrastructure-as-a-service market is expected to reach around 195 billion itself in 2024. Companies such as Amazon, Microsoft, and Google have all been quick to incorporate cloud services into their offerings, providing small and mid-sized companies with the opportunity to utilize cloud computing resources without the need for extensive investments into hardware. Having only introduced the business segment in 2014, Microsoft’s intelligent cloud segment has grown rapidly, rivaling even the company’s long-established personal computing segment in terms of revenue generation.

In late 2023, 65 percent of respondents from the Americas stated that they were heavy cloud service users. This is on par with the global average for cloud usage in the same year when the cloud market faced headwinds from the economic downturn.

In 2020, 27 percent of companies used private cloud services in Finland. Private cloud refers to private IT infrastructure dedicated for the use of a single organization. Private cloud usage was heaviest in the information and communication sector with 56 percent of companies using these services, followed by administrative and support service companies with 45 percent.

According to a survey conducted in 2020, around 73.7 percent of South Korean cloud users in their thirties stated they used cloud services for personal data and information management. The only age group of which less than 50 percent reported using cloud services for this purpose were South Koreans in their sixties. Slightly above half of respondents aged 70 years and older managed their personal data and information with the help of cloud services.

The statistic shows the extent of cloud services usage among businesses worldwide, according to a survey conducted by 451 Research. As of the first quarter of 2015, 55.5 percent of respondents said that their organization was using an on-premises private cloud.

Cloud computing has become an integral part of modern business operations, with public cloud services leading the way. A 2024 survey reveals that 97 percent of businesses worldwide prefer using public cloud services, highlighting the widespread adoption of this cost-effective model. The pay-as-you-go approach allows companies to scale resources as needed, making it an attractive option for organizations of all sizes. Market leaders and revenue growth The cloud computing market is dominated by a few key players, with Amazon Web Services (AWS) maintaining a strong lead. In 2023, AWS held a 48 percent market share in the global infrastructure as a service (IaaS) and platform as a service (PaaS) sectors. Microsoft Azure, Alibaba Cloud, and Google Cloud Platform follow, with the four hyperscalers expected to generate a combined revenue of 167.3 billion U.S. dollars. These companies leverage their global scale, innovative technology, and deep expertise to offer a wide range of services beyond basic cloud computing resources. Regional market forecasts The data center market, closely tied to cloud computing, is poised for significant growth across all regions by 2029. The United States is projected to lead with an estimated revenue of 212.06 billion U.S. dollars, far outpacing other markets such as the United Kingdom, which is forecast to reach 23.76 billion U.S. dollars. This substantial difference underscores the dominance of the U.S. market in the global cloud computing landscape and highlights the potential for continued expansion in other regions.

The use of internet-based storage services, also known as the cloud, to store data has risen steadily in Great Britain since 2015. In 2015, 54 percent of people between the ages of 16 to 24 living in Great Britain used cloud services to store data, a figure that rose to 75 percent by 2020.

As of 2024, 38 percent of respondents indicated that they were already using Microsoft Azure Stack private cloud services, ranking top on the list. This is followed by VMware vSphere/vCenter and AWS Outposts with 36 percent and 29 percent respectively.

In 2024, the survey underscores the continued dominance of data warehouses within cloud storage solutions. With 67 percent of respondents utilizing them, it is evident that businesses value the extensive analytical capabilities and structured data organization that data warehouses provide. This trend signals a persistent need for centralized repositories for data storage and analytics to support strategic decision-making. DBaaS relational databases gain traction The survey reveals a rising preference for database-as-a-service (DBaaS) relational databases. This shift suggests that organizations are increasingly seeking the scalability, ease of maintenance, and reduced administrative overhead that DBaaS solutions provide. People are using DBaaS more because they want to make databases easier and spend more time on important things. Oracle leads this segment among the database management systems providers. PaaS adoption accelerates A key finding from the survey is the marked increase in the adoption of cloud providers' platform-as-a-service (PaaS) offerings. This trend speaks volumes about a broader transformation; companies are decisively moving towards cloud-based platforms for their data needs. PaaS provides convenient building blocks for application development and deployment, accelerating innovation and time-to-market.