Nicola Mortimer, head of Business Products and Portfolio Management at O2
Mobile operator O2 has invested €3m in a new cloud software platform called O2 Digital Solutions, representing the biggest roll out of cloud business services by the company in its history.
O2 Digital Solutions’ range of services include an e-commerce solution, a website builder, security solutions, business class cloud storage, a videoconferencing platform, as well as mobile marketing and collaborative services.
“With our new Digital Solutions for business we are expanding our cloud portfolio, bringing a new suite of marketing, productivity and security solutions to our business customers, all delivered as cloud-based applications,” explained Nicola Mortimer, head of Business Products and Portfolio Management at O2.
“These products have very clear benefits for businesses,” she added.
“The Digital Solutions portfolio from O2 offers customers of all sizes cost-effective access to the latest productivity tools without major investment in servers, expensive software licences or support costs.
“We have been very clear in outlining our business strategy to become a total communications provider. As part of this, we want to provide businesses with everything they need to run their business more productively at lower cost with one point of contact and one bill. Cloud is central to this strategy. Because of the compelling business benefits, the cloud surge is now unstoppable. We aim to be at the forefront of delivering this to the Irish business market.”
Confusion reigns among SMEs about cloud computing
New research from O2 found that more than two-thirds of small businesses in Ireland use cloud software products, including well-known cloud apps, like Microsoft Office 365, Dropbox and SurveyMonkey.
This has risen to 69pc, up from 48pc 18 months ago.
The research also found that while Irish SMEs are increasing their use of cloud services, more than a third (36pc) are still unclear about the benefits.
Behaviour & Attitudes conducted the survey of 350 Irish business owners and managers in August. The survey follows a similar one commissioned by O2 18 months ago.
“Despite the increased uptake of cloud, our research finds that there is still confusion amongst SMEs regarding cloud software services. We aim to cut through and remove that confusion by providing easy-to-use services with the added benefit of full set up and support from our customer care team. This launch provides our customers cutting-edge technology at an affordable price,” she added.
“Our research over the last number of years suggests that many Irish companies are using some form of cloud service but may not recognise it as such,” Mortimer said.
