Print.IT Reseller - issue 71

01732 759725 4 BULLETIN Cloud print services ready for prime time Quocirca’s latest report The Cloud Print Services Market Landscape 2020 , finds the industry primed for transition to the cloud as customers turn their attention to reducing the cost, environmental impact and administrative burden of managing print infrastructure on-premise. Primary research conducted among IT decision-makers found that organisations with more than 1,000 employees currently operate an average of three on-premise print servers. On average each of these servers costs costs £1,900 to provision, followed by £1,500 per annum each in operating costs. As a result, businesses are exploring the potential of cloud print services to eliminate costs of on-premise servers while simultaneously improving security and efficiency. Quocirca Director, Louella Fernandes, said: “Broad adoption of the cloud is creating opportunities for organisations to shift print management away from the traditional on-premise environment to the cloud. “This is a critical point for OEMs and ISVs, as the transition to cloud print services is an opportunity to establish relationships that have potential to endure and evolve into strategic, value-led partnerships – exactly what the print industry needs to retain future relevance.” She added: “Most major print manufacturers have a growing cloud services and solutions portfolio designed to tailor to varied customer requirements. Meanwhile, leading ISVs are also expanding their offerings. These are particularly well-suited to the many existing mixed fleet environments.” www.quocirca.com Lack of diversity a concern A lack of diversity in teams developing artificial intelligence can lead to in-built bias and discrimination in its decisions says BCS, The Chartered Institute for IT – in a new report by a major government advisory body. The report, published by the Committee for Standards in Public Life (CSPL) examines whether the existing frameworks and regulations around machine learning are sufficient to ensure high standards of conduct are upheld as technologically assisted decision-making is adopted widely across the public sector. Director of Policy Dr Bill Mitchell, said: “Lack of diversity in product development teams is a concern as non-diverse teams may be more likely to follow practices that inadvertently hard- wire bias into new products or services.” Diverse teams will also make public authorities more likely to identify potential ethical pitfalls of an AI project, the report suggests. Many contributors emphasised the importance of diversity, telling the committee that diverse teams would lead to more diverse thought, and that in turn this would help public authorities identify any potential adverse impact of an AI system. www.bcs.org MSPs to expand service portfolios A new report from CompTIA highlights cybersecurity specialisation and services linked to the IOT as leading the next wave of technology offerings from MSPs. The growing need for cybersecurity expertise was identified as the leading driver of positive MSP performance, cited by 52% of firms surveyed. Two-thirds of MSPs surveyed for its Trends in Managed Services report said they expect to expand their service portfolio over the next year. While a segment of traditional MSPs has already evolved into security specialists or managed security services providers (MSSPs), the cybersecurity realm is rich with new opportunities. Senior Director, Industry Analysis, Carolyn April, said: “We see real excitement over new areas that have the potential to help MSPs tap new recurring revenue streams, attract new business and expand engagements with current customers. The successful MSP is likely to feature a combination of bedrock basic services and new, premium offerings.” www.comptia.org Technology hinders work-life balance The majority of respondents to a recent survey of 2,000 professionals carried out by staffing business Walters People, said that they hoped that tech-enabled remote working capabilities would give them a better work-life balance. However, almost half (42%) claimed that new smart working practices are negatively impacting their work-life balance. 85% of employees agree their productivity would be enhanced by technology, with a further 80% claiming working for a tech-savvy company would boost their morale, and 78% agreeing that tech would help enhance coordination between departments. However, whilst the aim of digital transformation is to create a ‘smarter working’ environment it brings with it some challenges. The biggest fear from employees is the expectation to always be on. Another key finding was that millennials widely perceive technology to be at the root of workplace conflicts. A third of millennials (34%) reported that older workers not understanding new technology was the chief cause of conflicts in the workplace, followed by younger workers becoming frustrated at using outdated technology (33%). www.walterspeople.com Application software trends The application software sector is undergoing profound and rapid change, according to GlobalData. The company’s latest report Tech, Media, & Telecom Trends 2020 – Thematic Research reveals how the value was historically all in the application itself, but is now driven by the integration of software. The data and analytics company has identified a number of top application software technology trends including the cloud which it says is an important model for IT resource delivery, RPA, machine learning, AI libraries, open source AI and augmented reality. www.globaldata.com Dr Bill Mitchell AWARDS 2020 ENTRIES & VOTING NOW OPEN www.printitawards.co.uk