The Tribune

By NATARIO McKENZIE

Tribune Business Reporter

nmckenzie@tribunemedia.net

A Bahamas-based cloud computing start-up is looking to deliver IT solutions and significant cost savings to Bahamian institutions, its director telling Tribune Business yesterday that the financial and hospitality industries were in its target market.

Stelios Xeroudakis, director of Cloud Carib, told Tribune Business that cloud computing delivers computing as a service rather than a product, providing greater cost savings, flexibility and efficiency in IT solutions.

He said: "We feel that this is very exciting technology. I recently visited the Bahamas for discussions with a financial company, and I noted that there wasn't any activity in cloud computing. We feel that we can bring this service to the Bahamas. Instead of having your own data centre, this will provide companies with an IT service with greater flexibility and efficiency. It is very cost effective."

Mr Xeroudakis added: "Our goal is to deliver IT solutions to Bahamian companies. We have already done a project for Doctor's Hospital. We are going to host an event for IT managers to let them know how they can benefit from this technology.

"Cloud computing is really popular in Europe with the financial industry. The financial industry certainly is our major target market for this service as well as the hospitality industry."

Ryan Austin, of Cloud Carib, told Tribune Business: "The cost savings are astronomical. Cloud computing allows you to use all of what you need when you need it. Cloud computing can protect the resources of a business because the data is not centralised.

"I often compare it to using electricity on a grid. It will, down the road, lessen the need for an in-house IT team. It's a trend that's been developing and is getting strong. A lot of people don't realise that they have been using cloud computing for when they use g-mail and hotmail, for instance." Mr Austin said that having been in operation for seven months, Cloud Carib was making significant strides in the industry.

Cloud Carib, a Microsoft BizSpark start-up, has a core focus on infrastructure and application virtualisation. The company offers personal service to all clients and customers. The company has been awarded Gold ProPartner status by Veeam Software, an Elite VMware Technology Alliance partner and has been named certified Citrix Silver Solution partner in the Bahamas.