Everyone knows that 'The Cloud' is the trend of the moment (as we write in 2015), and quite a journey it has been.

A couple of years ago, Onega did not recommend that clients used Office 365 as at the time it did not do everything you needed to do, that you could (and did) regularly on a server based office system. However, since 2013, Microsoft have continued to improve their cloud offerings to the point that it is now on a par with on-premises IT, and in some cases is overtaking this to go beyond. For example now, if you want to use MS Office on your iPhone or iPad, the only way is in conjunction with an Office 365 subscription. Windows 10 and Office 2015 will only be more integrated with the cloud and the lure will most likely be compelling for everyone not yet on the cloud at that point.

One of the benefits of the cloud is that it facilitates rapid iteration. i.e. instead of the traditional software model where you release software, install it on client systems, maintain it and then upgrade with Service Packs, roughly annually, and then upgrade to a new release two or three years down the track; now upgrades happen behind the scenes on a central service, are instantly available to clients without local IT having to do anything and are largely transparently to users. Office 365 has now had more than 25 iterations and a few more will likely be through before the end of the year.

The other big change in the last couple of years is that fibre broadband is now (nearly) pervasive, and fast wireless services are available elsewhere which typically give up to 50Mbps speeds for £3X a month on a business grade connection. For established companies, the SuperConnected Cities Project (see http://www.onega.net/blog/superconnectedbroadbandvouchers) allows for free install of 'real' fibre Internet for very high speeds and SLA's. Thus you can now both have your cloud cake and eat it.

So back to the headline of the article here. Building momentum and phenomenal growth in Cloud and adoption of MS Office 365 (mainly because the case is compelling all round) means that we are now at the point where a grand total of 35% of all MS Exchange's installed user base is now on Office 365 and Exchange Online (the email only version of Office 365).

That's quite a statistic and we'd not be surprised if this was over 50% within 12 months, if not more. In fact we'd be surprised if this was less by that time.

So here, the market speaks volumes and if you've not yet got a cloud strategy then please do sign up for a free trial via Onega and feel free to get in touch to run through your particular setup and how we can help you get the most out of the Cloud for your business. http://www.onega.net/contact