New | Lead the IT industry. Research and develop Cloud Appliance For Enterprise (CAFÉ) including hosting cloud CAKE, desktop cloud PC2 , and storage cloud Cosa.
Impact |Cooperate with Japan TOKAI Communications IDC. Successfully export the product to overseas market and make TOKAI IDC spreading procurement a reality in 13 locations.
Key |High quality to price ratio. Easy to use. Open API for customization. Target the market of small and medium size enterprises.
Evidence |Facilitate the joint venture between Japan and Taiwan to establish the company CloudMaster and launch the private cloud product Pracla into the market. Cloud computing is an internet based algorism and also an innovative IT application that relies on resource sharing to reach economic scale. Through the Internet, users of computers and other devices can acquire shared software and hardware resources according to their demand.
Cloud computing has caused market shift of the IT industry. According to III MIC market report, since 2010, Taiwan already has 10 hardware products ranked 1st in their individual markets in terms of market share. Nevertheless, the problem is that if the IT industry devotes only to standardized products, each firm inevitably continues to compete for lower price and revenue decreases. For this reason, Taiwan IT industry dedicates itself to developing cloud software system and creates high value added cloud device products and application services. This is a whole new chance for industry transformation.
3 IN 1 CAFÉ, The First Domestically Researched and Developed Private Cloud To follow the international trend and assist Taiwan IT hardware industry transform and make progress in the cloud industry, III researched and developed “3 in 1 CAFÉ (Cloud Appliance For Enterprise)”system ,which is the first domestically researched and developed private cloud. The three technologies – Cloud Appliance Kernel Environment (CAKE), Cloud Object Storage Appliance (COSA), and Personal Cloud Computer (PC2)- have become the necessary tools for companies to upgrade current IT structure to cloud frameworks. These technologies not only gained 2012 Global Information and Communication Product of Excellence Award in World Conference on International Telecommunications (WCIT), received Best Choice Award at 2012 Computex, but also won the honorary title of 2013 IT Month Best 100 Innovative Product Golden Award. Among all the other awarded products, III CAFÉ has built its reputation in the professional field.
The “3 in 1 CAFÉ (Cloud Appliance For Enterprise)”system has the private cloud advantages of safety and trustworthiness and the public cloud benefits of convenience and affordability. With cheap monthly fees, Small and medium size businesses can afford reliable equipment with public cloud favors of convenience and low cost as well as shared resources for private access, which runs 365 days a year, 24 hours a day. Clients of the service can manage the system by themselves without relevant knowledge of cloud technology. For instance, the self-service Pracla is simple and easy to use.
Meanwhile, CAFÉ has the private cloud advantage of safety. Take Amazon’s public cloud for example. Since many users log in the system at the same time, it is possible that users might interfere each other or the system might encounter malicious invasion. On the contrary, a private cloud is controlled by a team within the enterprise or by an individual of the organization using the cloud so that it is extremely safe. After the test conducted by TOKAI Communications IDC for 8 months, users have more confidence in CAKE.
CAFÉ uses hosting cloud CAKE as the basic framework providing users virtual resources. The storage cloud Cosa is something like Dropbox. It can designate system managers and adjust shared resources for various departments according to requirements. The system can also act as the organization structure framework for enterprise internal management. The desktop cloud Personal Cloud Computer (PC2) conducts it computation in the cloud so that those tasks which could not be done previously become possible now. For example, users can use Photoshop through Browsers as the interface. In terms of a smart classroom, while students disable the link between desktop cloud and PC2, the Thin-Client PCs or Pads return to the default setting. It is extremely convenient for teachers who normally need the extra effort reconfigure the computers or devices shared with their students.
Build CAFÉ Cloud Ecosystem For small and medium size businesses, the advantages of CAFÉ lie in it capability to customize related services. Engineers can adjust the system according to client demand and provide API with layers for clients to make adjustment. For the flexibility, relatively, enterprises can save a large amount of cost such as the cost of machine room, machinery, and human resource.
Indeed, cloud services lower the bar for entering a market. Take the United States of America for example. Companies spend 70 to 80 percent of their resources on information technology. With cloud computing, businesses can reduce IT maintenance fees dramatically and save millions of dollars simply from the expenses for machinery equipment. The existence of CAFÉ provides more opportunities for the small and medium size enterprises.
The trend that hardware manufacturers combine its own strength with cloud software system has formed and accumulated a large number of business opportunities. III has successfully integrated domestic vital hardware and software enterprises and facilitated a Cloud Ecosystem. In 2013, III further cooperated with Japan TOKAI Communications IDC. The successful collaboration indicates that, in terms of technology, CAFÉ’s hosting cloud, CAKE, becomes mature and has the competiveness while facing international challenges. In the future, Taiwan companies will develop high quality and fair price cloud server products to enter the cloud market with the help of their hardware advantages.