The momentum continues to build in a technology-rich society where consumers are the drivers. Lifestyle standards are changing at an accelerating speed. Global businesses need to keep up with the pace to remain players in their industry. The personal cloud is predicted to replace PCs for the majority of consumer content storage needs. Only 7 percent of digital content was stored in the personal cloud in 2011 and expected to reach 36 percent as early as 2016. The choice to enter the consumer cloud space is to buy or build. A white label consumer cloud offer is an ideal solution for businesses to enter the cloud market with minimal financial risks. It is designed to increase market share opportunities and help with customer retention. If a company buys or builds, the fact remains that harnessing the cloud is a requirement in order to compete in times ahead.
2. The momentum continues to build in a technology-rich
society where consumers are the drivers. Lifestyle
standards are changing at an accelerating speed.
Global businesses need to keep up with the pace to
remain players in their industry. The adoption of the
cloud is no longer a choice but a means for survival.
3. INTRODUCTION
As the industry demonstrates on a daily basis,
technology is undergoing a major
transformation. Over the past few years,
technology has made unprecedented strides,
forcing companies to reevaluate their business
models and become open to new possibilities.
Threats are coming, not from traditional
competitors, but from new approaches utilizing
this technology. The role and structure of IT is
changing, the increased need for technology
from consumers is exploding, product
development cycles along with market response
times are shorter and the cloud is no longer a
nice idea but it is the super glue holding all of
this activity together. The adoption of the cloud
is a critical component in these ultra-disruptive
times.
Global corporate leaders are faced with two key
challenges: first, how to rapidly enter the cloud
market to capitalize on a time sensitive
opportunity. Second, how to minimize the costs
and risks associated with building their core
business while simultaneously expanding into an
unknown market to meet consumer demands.
Companies are pressured to look at quick
solutions to leverage their business in order to
increase the average revenue per user (ARPU),
reduce costs and protect their brand.
The cloud has become the backbone of
technology for both consumers and companies.
In today’s market, the ability to access data
anytime, anywhere from any device is assumed.
Cloud storage is now a commodity and the
concepts of share, sync and collaborate are
utilized by consumers worldwide. The
functionality of the cloud is an integral part of a
consumer’s everyday life.
Research firm Gartner is warning the industry:
service providers slow to adapt to the cloud
market are looking at tough times ahead. Only 7
percent of digital content was stored in the
personal cloud in 2011 and expected to reach 36
percent as early as 2016. The personal cloud is
predicted to replace PCs for the majority of
consumer content storage needs. Gartner
predicts the end user will spend $131 billion in
2013 on the public cloud and that number will
rise to $180 billion in the next two years. If
companies are not in a search mode for a cloud
content management component that can be
integrated into their business model, they have
already fallen far behind. Now is the time for
global companies to find the right consumer
cloud solution. The crucial first step is making
the decision to buy versus build.
Companies will need to approach the cloud
market carefully if they choose to use a third
party provider. Some cloud providers are
throwing their products and services into the
market in a “me too” fashion with hope of
getting a foot in the industry door. It will be
important for companies to conduct their due
diligence to ensure they choose a cloud solution
with a proven product that complements their
brand, business standards and financial model.
If a company buys or builds, the fact remains
that harnessing the cloud is a requirement in
order to play in times ahead.
Only 7 percent of digital
content was stored in the
personal cloud in 2011 and
expected to reach 36 percent
as early as 2016.
01
4. 01 MOBILE DEVICES//
Transforming Mobile Industries
02 MOBILE DATA USAGE//
An Explosion and Creating New Norms
03 THE CLOUD//
No Longer a Business Choice
04 CONSUMERS//
Global Trends and Growth
05 CONSUMER RETENTION//
Increases “Stickiness”
06 WHITE LABEL CONSUMER CLOUD SERVICES//
Why It Makes Business Sense
TABLE OF CONTENTS
5. MOBILE DEVICES//Transforming Global Industries
The infiltration of mobile devices into the modern
world has transformed global societies. The power
of mobility has caused the consumer to view
devices as essential daily items that contribute to
the quality of life. A household with multiple
devices is now commonplace and the owners
spread along the age spectrum. Connected
devices such as smartphones, tablets, game
consoles and streaming media set top boxes have
easily worked their way into the global household.
A large percentage of consumers are now at a
point where they will not hesitate to make a
purchase to get the latest and greatest gadget to
stay on top of the trends.
From January 2013 to April 2013 the average
number of devices per household in the United
States increased from 5.3 to 5.7.1
The size of the
household, lifestyle and income levels can raise
these averages well into the teens. Demographics
of the device-driven household also expanded
with lifestyle changes and advances in technology.
Young children and seniors are now appreciable
players in the technology consumer base, making
the mobile device market more widespread and
commoditized.
With commoditization comes a shift in the
industry, a change to consumer demands and
purchase patterns as well as cultural lifestyle
changes. Consumers have fully embraced a
technology-rich environment and have become
an important voice of new device developments.
Consumer demands point to sleeker, lighter and
more transportable device options. People want
to be connected all the time and with today’s
on-the-go lifestyle society is mobile in every
sense of the word.
This conversion into a mobile lifestyle has had
great influence on consumer purchase behaviors
and continues to impact the stability of various
traditional markets. For example, in 2013, PC
shipments declined worldwide while tablet and
mobile phone device shipments are on the rise
and projected to grow.2
Tablet shipments are expected to surpass
desktop PCs and notebooks in a short time since
their introduction. Projections show the number
of tablet users will reach 905 million worldwide
by 2017, yielding a dramatic climb from only 15
million users in 2010.3
The once dominant PC
market will be faced with future challenges due
to the accelerated speed of consumer demand in
the tablet and smartphone market.
1 NPD Group, Mar 18, 2013 2 Gartner, Press Release Apr 4, 2013
3 IDC Press Release, Mar 26, 2013
From January 2013 to April 2013
the average number of household
devices in the United States
increased from 5.3 to 5.7.
03
6. 4 IDC, Mobile Channels, Apr 5, 2013
5 Gartner, Forbes, Oct. 23, 2012
6 Cisco: The Guardian, Feb 7, 2013
Looking forward, predictions show the
worldwide smart connected device space will
continue to surge, with shipments surpassing 2.2
billion units and revenues reaching $814.3 billion
in 2017.4
With the saturation of mobility among
consumers, the most popular connected device
to access the internet is projected to change
from the PC to the tablet and mobile smart
phone.5
Globally, the projected number of
connected mobile devices as a whole will exceed
the number of humans on earth with more than
7 billion units in circulation toward the end of
2013.6
Lower prices on tablets and smartphones
have made buying mobile devices a more viable
option for many households, creating an
explosion in the use of connected devices
worldwide.
It is clear the technology revolution has created
a mobile revolution. The world has turned
mobile and agility is vital for organizations to
stay competitive.
The world has turned mobile and
agility is vital for corporations
to stay competitive.
WORLDWIDE DEVICE SHIPMENTS BY SEGMENTS (thousands of units)
Source: Gartner, June 2013
PC
(Desk-Based & Notebook)
341,273 305,178 289,239
9,787 20,301 39,824
120,203 201,825 276,178
1,746,177
2012 2013 2014
1,821,193 1,901,188
Mobile Phone
Ultramobile
Tablet
04
7. MOBILE DATA USAGE//An Explosion with New Norms
The popularity in mobile devices has created an explosion for the need of high speed
data via online channels. Figures representing current internet usage appropriately puts
global online activity levels into context:
204 million Emails Sent
100 hours YouTube Videos
1.3 million Video Views
2+ million Google Searches
6 million Facebook Views
277K Profile Logins
20 million Photo Views
3K Flickr Uploads
100+ New LinkedIn Accounts
100 K New Tweets
320+ New Accounts
4,860 Comments
61,141 hours Music Played
47K Apps Downloaded
AN INTERNET MINUTE AND THE CLOUD
639,800 GB
IP DATA TRANSFERRED
WORLDWIDE
almost a quarter of all mobile data users
are expected to use 2 gigabytes of data
per day. Two gigabytes is roughly equal to
10 hours of video, 15 hours of audio, 15 app
downloads or five video calls.
By 2017...
Various Sources Used: Intel,Twitter,Dazinfo,Cisco
05
8. penetration and data consumption levels up.9
As
penetration levels rise, online access is considered
to be a commodity-based service to a large
portion of the population and that concept is
spreading across most nations. The viral nature
brought to the market by mobile and internet
capabilities present an enticing opportunity. Many
industries are looking to expand their scope of
products and services to tap into the demand while
it is still open to diverse possibilities.
As the rest of the world joins the mobility culture,
the connected population is “on” all the time.
Constant access to the internet has given
consumers a reason to leave one device at one
location, use another device from a different
location and pick up exactly where they left off.
Mobile and broadband markets have changed
human lifestyle so quickly, anytime, anywhere with
any device is the standard. As a result of this
standard, a seamless experience with a single sign
on has also become the new expectation.
Consumers are weaving more and more mobile
technology into most aspects of their personal,
business and educational lives. Therefore, they are
always in search of products and services that will
help improve their mobile, online experience to
make their lives better.
7 UN Millennium Development Goals Report 2013
8 Cisco, Visual Networking Index: Global Mobile Data Traffic Forecast
Update, 2012–2017, Feb 6, 2013
9 ICT Facts and Figures 2013
In 2013, there are an estimated 2.7 billion
internet users around the globe, with Europe
taking the lead with the highest penetration
rate followed by the Americas.7
With mobile tablets and smartphones
predicted to replace PCs as the primary vehicle
to access the internet, data usage, data
consumption and penetration levels are
projected to rise substantially more in the next
few years than in previous years. Total figures
will be impacted in the very near term, partly
due to the massive growth in device usage that
is anticipated in Asia, the Pacific and Africa.8
As the global economy improves, connected
device purchases will become a viable financial
option. In current times, the popularity of
smartphones has boosted internet usage
figures to double annually in developed
markets.
With almost 40 percent of the world online and
the progressive use of mobile devices,
broadband prices have generally become more
affordable to the user. Fixed broadband prices
have drastically decreased by approximately 82
percent over the past 4 years, pushing internet
(per 100 inhabitants)
16%
AFRICA
%
32 %
38
%
52 %
61 %
75
INTERNET PENETRATION BY
REGION IN 2013
ASIA ARAB STATES
CIS AMERICAS EUROPE
Source: ITU World Telecommunication / ICT Indicator Database
Internet Penetration Levels Increase as Broadband Prices Decrease
164.6
115.1
20
5
3
2.5 2.0 1.7 1.7 1.7
6
10
27
59.7
41.8
28.5
21.5
85.1
59.4
40.3
30.1
2008 2009 2010 2011 2012
Developing Countries
Worldwide
Developed Countries
KEY
Penetration
Prices
06
9. 10 Nasuni, The State of Cloud Storage in 2013
11 Gartner, IIFL, Jul 29, 2013
The vital link sustaining the global movement within
the technology and mobile revolution is the cloud.
Today, most consumers do not even realize they use
the cloud when accessing mainstream channels
such as email, YouTube, online banking or
Facebook. In years ahead, awareness of the cloud
and its value will be much more prominent. The
public cloud is the nucleus that supports
technology consumerization. Technology-driven
companies can no longer afford to develop
business models without a cloud component if they
intend to remain relevant in the market. Companies
without the cloud as a part of their overall
technology strategy are taking great risks.
Cloud computing in current times has become
equal to what software was in the 80s. Initially,
cloud computing was primarily designed and used
for programming needs and application
development. It quickly evolved into various
subsets and many more subspecialties such as: IaaS
(Infrastructure as a Service), PaaS (Platform as a
Service) and SaaS (Software as a Service) to
name the higher levels.
The cloud as it relates to the consumer is
traditionally used to access, store, stream and
share data. Present figures suggest there is an
estimated 1 exabyte, equal to an approximate
1 billion gigabyte, of stored data in the public
cloud as a whole; this number is expected to
climb exponentially in a very short timeframe.10
Corporate spending in the entire cloud market
has grown at an astonishing pace and is
forecasted to reach $131 billion worldwide in
2013. That number is projected to quickly climb
to $210 billion by 2016 with North America as the
primary growth region.11
The emergence of technology, the evolving
consumer culture and the adoption of the cloud
are playing big roles in predicting the future
health of global business environments. The
cloud is disrupting the market, just as the
THE CLOUD//No Longer a Business Choice
Technology-driven companies
can no longer afford to develop
business models without a cloud
component if they intend to
remain relevant in their market
Public Cloud Services Market and Annual Growth Rate, 2010-2016
77
$inBillions
93
110
131
155
181
210
Source: ITU World Telecommunication / ICT Indicator Database
2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 20162015
07
10. internet rocked “brick and mortar” businesses in
the last decade. The cloud is transforming
consumer buying habits and stealing competitor’s
business. If companies do not respond by including
cloud-based services into their product portfolio, it
may result in a drastic market share upset.
Although market share shift within an industry is
common, the difference with today’s technology
and the cloud industry is the speed with which it is
happening. This is clearly seen with tablet and
mobile phone shipments versus PC shipments this
year. Companies may want to act quickly to ensure
they stay ahead of growing cloud trends. Some
elbow room is necessary to give companies time
to build a defensive barrier around their customers
by providing services that are hard to replicate.
Head-to-Head Competition with
Corporations, Acquisitions & Mergers:
Emerging Markets are Dominating
Although market share shift
within an industry is common,
the difference with today's
technology and the cloud
industry is the speed with
which it is happening.
CONSUMER
DEMAND
FLEXIBILITY
EMERGING TRADITIONAL>
EMERGING MARKETS
INTEGRATION OF
TECHNOLOGY
ADVANCES
TRADITIONAL
08
11. 12 Intel, SC & Tech Mar 20, 2013
13 Cisco, Broadband DSL Feb 6, 2013
14 Cisco. Visual Networking Index: Global Mobile Data Traffic Forecast
Update, 2012–2017
15 Gartner, Forecast, Consumer Digital Storage Needs, Mar 16, 2012
Source: Gartner, 2013
The rate of change in the next few years is expected
to be equal to what our society has seen in the last
decade of technology developments. The increase
of mobile and cloud usage, spread of broadband
coverage and advanced technology will create
unprecedented benchmarks. Although current
statistics of global technology may sound
impressive, it is no match for what lies ahead.
The number of global networked devices is
expected to double from more than 7 billion in 2013
to 14 billion by 2015.12
Data traffic is projected to
increase from 1.6 exabytes per month in 2013 to 11.2
exabytes per month by 2017.13
Video will claim its position as the high growth
market leader in times ahead. In 2013, video usage
produced approximately 0.7 exabytes per month.
An astronomical increase is expected in the video
market in just a few years. Video usage projections
climb to 7.4 exabytes per month in 2016 and will
account for 66 percent of all global traffic.14
Despite
economic challenges, emerging nations will deliver
a strong contribution to growth while developed
nations continue to further penetrate into the
booming market.
As the population transitions to a post PC-era,
consumers will become more reliant on multiple
connected devices equipped with cameras to fulfill
the majority of their needs. Technology
advancements of the future such as improved video
capabilities and 3D camera images will increase file
sizes leading to a greater need for storage. The
speed of technology advancements in photo
and video will outpace compression technology,
impacting storage requirements as well.
Worldwide consumer storage needs will rise to
an expected total of 4.1 zettabytes by 2016.15
CONSUMERS//Global Trends and Growth
Source: Cisco Global Cloud Index
The Explosion of Global Digital Content Creation
Storage Needs Will Increase
2011
0
5
10
15
20
25
30
Exabytes
2012 2013 2014 2015 2016
AN AVERAGE HOUSEHOLD IN 2016:
Digital Storage Needs By Content
MOVIES & VIDEOS
51%
PHOTOS
35%
APPS
11%
DOCS
2%
MUSIC
1%
09
12. 16 IDC, Copperegg Sept 11, 2012
The foundational element to support upcoming
mobile growth is the cloud. The number of cloud
subscriptions will climb quickly with a projected
1.3 billion subscribers by 2017.16
To store, share,
sync, stream and collaborate will be a common
routine for most global populations. Consumers
will look to the personal cloud as a means to bring
the latest technology advancements to their lives.
The rise of consumer usage
and dependency of mobile
devices will produce a large
spike in data creation and
consumption pushing storage
needs to new norms.
Source: HIS iSuppli Research, October 2012
World Forecaster Personal Cloud Subscriptions
(in millions)
2012
0
200
400
600
800
1000
1200
1400
Subscriptions
2013 2014 2015 2016 2017
10
13. “STICKINESS” POSSIBLE
INCREMENTAL REVENUE
(per household)
$80 3 months $240x =
(per household)
$80 6 months $480x =
(per household)
$80
$960
12 months
1000 consumers
$960x
x
=
$960,000=
PERSONALEDUCATION BUSINESS
Smartphone Video Chat
SmartTVs
Video Streaming
3D Photos & Videos
Wearables
Mobile Video
Consumer Needs Grow with Upcoming
Technology Advancements
With storage subscriptions on the rise and the
personal cloud viewed as a commodity service in
the market, providers are coming up with new
strategies to increase paid and unpaid
subscriptions to capture a piece of that market.
Cloud storage wars routinely take place between
competitors in an effort to attract new customers.
Many hardware device companies also want to take
part in the storage game by offering free cloud
storage as a bundled promotion with the purchase
of a new device.
A cloud storage offering serves as a solid base to
keep consumers satisfied, with the added value of
retention. Although a free cloud storage delivers
indirect revenue, the strategy behind the offer is to
increase the “stickiness” factor to generate direct
revenue. Savvy companies have come to realize
that once a consumer uploads a large portion of
their photos, videos and files into the personal
cloud it can strengthen consumer loyalty and lead
to a paid conversion path.
A cloud offering is an opportunity for companies to
retain revenue for core services that might be lost if
a customer chooses to move to another provider
for cloud services. The exact scale of retained
revenue would depend on corporate-specific
information such as business model objectives and
the type of service the company chooses to
offer.
CONSUMER RETENTION//Increases “Stickiness”
A cloud offering is a great
opportunity for companies
to maintain revenue for core
services as it also serves
as a means to introduce
new products.
11
14. Further penetrating a brand
in a competitive cloud
marketplace can convert
into increased consumer
retention and an additional
revenue source.
A white label in general terms is a product or
service where a company purchases a fully
supported product from another source, then
applies its own brand and identity to it. The
company, in turn, sells the product as its own to
give the purchaser the impression the product was
created by their brand.
A reputable white label cloud provider can offer
companies a near turn-key solution to quickly
respond to consumer needs and gain a competitive
advantage in this fast-paced industry. It delivers the
benefit of retaining control over the appearance,
policies and support of their product line while
gaining access to a market-proven software and
infrastructure.
A white label cloud offering allows companies to:
• Rapidly increase products offered to their
customers
• Reduce churn and increase the “stickiness” factor
• Increase Average Revenue Per User (ARPU)
• Decrease research and development spending
• Accelerate deployment and reduce costs to train,
test and release a new product offering
• Add a new revenue source and extend market
share into a growing global market
• Minimize risk in an ever-changing industry
Consumer and Brand Benefits
A company’s brand can be its greatest asset and
holds significant value. Further penetrating a brand
in a competitive cloud marketplace can convert
into increased consumer retention and an
additional revenue source. With the trends of
advanced technology increasing in our everyday
lives and cloud usage on the rise, a brand
presence in the industry is essential. Companies
need to maintain a connection with their
customer base in order to strengthen loyalty,
gain trust, protect and ultimately grow market
share.
In today’s connected environment, brands have
a greater opportunity to form direct
relationships with consumers with the use of
smartphones and tablets. This increases the
need for companies to keep their brand in the
forefront of their consumer base by offering a
wide array of products and services. By doing
this, companies can reap the benefits of
increasing the “stickiness” factor and strengthen
consumer loyalty. A new product offering in a
booming cloud market can solidify a
company’s commitment to customer
satisfaction by responding to a service that is in
high demand.
A Turnkey Cloud Solution
A primary challenge for many companies can be
keeping up with quickly emerging consumer
technology advancements and staying on top of
the trends. Many companies may find they do
not have enough time or resources to effectively
WHITELABEL CONSUMER CLOUD SERVICES//
Why It Makes Good Business Sense
12
15. build a quality cloud service offering to satisfy
the needs of their consumers, while
simultaneously maintaining and building other
parts of their core business. Conversely,
organizations that want to enter the consumer
cloud market may invest too much upfront time,
over-allocate valuable resources and overspend
in building an infrastructure that may outweigh
the benefits of the product. In a constantly
evolving market, a cloud offering which is not
implemented strategically can produce more
negative than positive financial outcomes.
Start-Up
A white label cloud offering shifts the weight of
expensive start-up costs from the company to
the third party provider. Foundational elements
such as infrastructure, software and consumer
interface are pre-developed, tested, refined and
already in use. This immediately gives
companies the upper hand by transitioning what
would be a variable cost for start-up into a fixed
cost, allowing for a simplified financial structure
that can be easily integrated into their business
model.
Product Development and Launch
An experienced white label provider should be
able to give a company invaluable insight of the
cloud consumer, based on their direct
experience in the market. Companies can easily
customize a cloud service offering that fits into
their own marketing plan and business model by
using the research and input from a credible
source specializing in the cloud business. This
can greatly reduce the trial and error factor that
comes with development of a new product and
aid in generating a successful launch. An
effective white label provider will act as a
partner with a company to ensure business goals
are met and consistently achieved.
Maintaining and Scaling
The fast-paced environment in technology and
the cloud industry requires full time, dedicated
resources to ensure the latest trends are
incorporated into the product to keep the
service competitive and valuable. The white
label provider assumes the role of the product
development specialist, taking the burden of
research and planning away from the company.
It allows companies to be proactive and also
react quickly to consumer demands.
Companies interested in entering the cloud
business have a very short window of
opportunity to become players in the industry as
well as remain relevant in the eyes of their
consumers. The continuous speed of consumer
demand heightens the attractiveness of a white
label due to its short turnaround times for
implementation, decreased financial risk and
prompt execution attributes. Selecting a third
party provider with experience in the consumer
cloud sector can be the solution for global
companies to stay on top.
In a constantly evolving market,
a cloud offering which is not
implemented strategically can
produce more negative than
positive financial outcomes.
13
16. Selecting a third-party
provider with experience in
the consumer cloud sector
can be the solution for global
companies to stay on top.
Reduces Resource Requirements
Immediate Access to Consumer Cloud Market
No Product Development
(start-up or maintenance)
OVERALL VALUE
Portfolio of Products Customer Satisfaction “Stickiness”
Revenue Potential Market Share
TURNKEY WHITE LABEL VALUE
White Label
Provider
CorporationsPARTNERSHIP
CONSUMER
CORPORATION
Quick Implementation
Reduced Financial Risk
14
17. CX, Inc. is a white label consumer cloud partner
focused on empowering companies to stay
competitive. The CX mission is to consistently
improve its white label product in order to help
partners gain market share and strengthen the
relationship they have with their member base.
The CX business model is unique in the cloud
consumer industry. Its focus is to stay innovative
and on top of global technology trends in order to
develop cutting-edge cloud product enhancements
that will be well received by consumers. A key
component of the model is the way with which CX
uses its established base of global users as a “test
market” to evaluate products and services before
they are passed on to white label partners.
The CX consumer cloud white label offering is
designed to allow companies the ability to quickly
launch and market a competitive cloud product.
Infrastructure, software applications and customer
service fundamentals are consistently tested,
enhanced and refined. Core elements include
hosting, storage, website, mobile device software,
desktop sync applications, technical operations,
support and software maintenance.
ABOUT CX//
Visit www.cx.com for more information.
15