IBM adds PaaS offering and more services to cloud portfolio

IBM has expanded its cloud computing portfolio with the addition of a platform-as-a-service (PaaS) offering and additional services for public and private clouds.

The company said its SmartCloud Application Services will allow companies to deploy applications on its cloud-based middleware platform.

IBM hopes the PaaS offering will dramatically reduce the time needed to develop and deploy web-based applications. The update will also bring support for SAP middleware management platforms.

Ric Telford, vice president of IBM cloud services, told V3 that the SmartCloud Application Services line will allow companies to take advantage of middleware platforms for application development.

"Companies want to not just do the same thing cheaper, they also want to do it better," Telford explained.

"Moving to the cloud gives them a different paradigm for application development and deployment."

In addition to the PaaS offering, IBM is looking to expand its SmartCloud Foundation tools for private cloud systems and expand its partnership programmes with third-party IT service providers.

Telford said the expansions would seek to capitalise on what IBM sees as a shift in the way companies are using cloud computing platforms. He said that many firms have moved beyond the early stages of cloud adoption and are now looking to move platforms from on-premise and private cloud deployments into public cloud services.

"When we got under way with the cloud four or five years ago, it was about 'here is what the cloud is and how it can help you save money'," Telford explained.

"Now we are seeing a definite pattern of enterprises saying 'OK, if I can make it do this, I need that level of control so I can think about moving some of my production applications into the cloud'."