01732 759725 30 RESEARCH The drive for cloud print continues as businesses seek to trim costs and management time. However, Quocirca’s Cloud Print Services 2023 report reveals that adoption is growing more complex, as organisations balance concerns around cost, security and performance The drive for cloud print continues or completely removed print servers in the past year. Moreover, 48 per cent have actually increased the number they are using. Among those operating mixed vendor fleets or using MPS, the figure is higher – 58 per cent and 60 per cent respectively have deployed more print servers. Barriers to adoption The survey also found that, despite general recognition that cloud security is typically more robust than on-premise capabilities, security remains the top barrier to cloud print management adoption. More than one-third of ITDMs say device and document security are key concerns. 29 per cent cited a lack of demonstrable cost savings, while 28 per cent were concerned about performance in terms of the impact on printing if connectivity is lost. Quocirca Research Director Louella Fernandes said: “These findings indicate that organisations are taking a more thoughtful approach to the cloud print transition. While aware of the benefits, they are looking for greater certainty in terms of cost savings and performance. “Cloud security remains a key concern keeping companies’ printing onpremise. However, both cloud and onpremise environments are susceptible to security breaches, and businesses shouldn’t forgo the considerable cost and resource advantages cloud print solutions can deliver on the basis of security concerns. MPS providers and ISVs need to focus on clarifying their messaging on security, cost, and performance benefits in order to support the continued cloud transition.” A hybrid future supported by MPS For organisations with tighter security regulations that are not yet ready to eliminate on-premise print servers, a hybrid solution offers ease of use for administrators while still allowing for consolidation and cost savings. Certain data around the print job is managed by on-premise servers, while the metadata around the job itself is managed in the cloud, deployed under a single management platform. MPS providers are playing an important role in the deployment of cloud print. 40 per cent of respondents using full MPS are very satisfied with their shift to a cloud-based print infrastructure, while only 27 per cent of those not using full MPS can say the same. “This suggests that utilising a thirdparty MPS provider is a more successful strategy for reaping the full benefits of cloud print than going it alone,” Louella commented. “With cloud print services listed as a key supplier selection factor by almost half (45 per cent) of IT decision-makers, MPS providers with cloud expertise are in a strong position. “As the capabilities of cloudbased print management systems continue to improve, a move to the cloud will become attractive to more organisations. For those with a highly decentralised, hybrid workforce that requires high levels of both device and information security, as well as flexibility and the capacity to add more business capabilities into their print environment, cloud-based print management is fast becoming the only option,” she concluded www.quocirca.com Quocirca’s research conducted among 507 IT decision-makers (ITDMs) in the UK, USA, France, and Germany found that cloud momentum is evident in the print environment. 31 per cent of respondents said they now manage printing fully or mostly in the cloud, and more than half (55 per cent) expect to do so by 2025. Almost a quarter (21 per cent) of the IT decision-makers polled said that they expect their IT infrastructure to be fully in the cloud by 2025, an increase from five per cent who are fully cloud-based today. A further 36 per cent expect to be mostly cloud-based, up from 29 per cent today. Hybrid cloud is set to be the dominant approach, with two-thirds (67 per cent) of survey participants expecting this will be their approach by 2025. Eliminating print servers More than half (53 per cent) of organisations are using a cloud print service today and 33 per cent plan to do so in the next two years. Yet, surprisingly, few companies are succeeding in eliminating print servers entirely. Despite the tangible benefits in terms of hardware, management and environmental cost reductions of a serverless print environment, just 13 per cent of respondents have reduced Louella Fernandes Director, Quocirca
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy NDUxNDM=