The company says, ‘In providing straightforward yet powerful virtual computing services, Virgin Media Business is making a direct challenge to competitors that have brought unnecessary confusion to the cloud, complicating what can be a simple and highly effective way to manage an organisations IT.’
“Organisations are craving some clarity and no-nonsense advice. Providing easy-to-use, simple cloud services that do exactly what they say they’ll do, really well, is a breath of fresh air. Most are already signed up to the benefits of the cloud, but constant jargon and complicated advice have created a real barrier to entry,” said Mark Heraghty, managing director, Virgin Media Business.
“Today, we’re launching a cloud product and a market strategy that’s got all the right ingredients. We’re backing this up with the largest nationwide fibre-optic network, and the straightforward advice and support everyone expects from a Virgin company. We’re already working with organisations across the UK that don’t want to be constrained by their IT systems, systems that are no longer able to respond to the rapidly changing world we now find ourselves in. The dramatic rise in data volumes, the move to a remote workforce and the merging of business and consumer technology are all putting greater pressures on today’s businesses. Cloud gives organisations more choice in how to deal with these pressures and we’re here to show that cloud doesn’t have to be complex. In fact with us it’s amazingly simple,” Mr Heraghty said.
Virgin Media Business is kicking off its move into the cloud market with the launch of its first true cloud product, the Virtual Private Data Centre (VPDC), which will provide all types of businesses with powerful virtual computing power. For example, the new service will enable enterprises to quickly and effectively test and develop applications without having to pay for hardware or give up vital office space. Equally, businesses looking to take advantage of a vibrant online market can use the service to develop and launch their e-commerce facilities, giving them the ability to easily increase their virtual servers as customer demand builds.
The VPDC service will allow IT managers to gain virtual computing power quickly and easily by designing and deploying their own private data centre in just a few clicks. They can have it up and running the same day and the set-up can then be modified as and when required, with changes being ready to go within 90 minutes.
Andrew Barron, chief operating officer of Virgin Media, said: “Our customers are hungry for simplicity and technology that really works for them, whether they be people wanting to be entertained at home or businesses striving to be freed from the constraints placed on them by their IT infrastructure.
“In a market that has traditionally been subjected to hype, jargon and unsubstantiated claims, we’re giving organisations across the country clear and simple advice, backed up by the most user-friendly and effective technology available,” he said.
To give businesses even more freedom, customers are not tied into minimum length contracts and are billed by the hour for however much virtual power they choose to use.