Roundup: IBM's Cloud Computing Rollout

Silicon Alley Insider tied IBM's decision to partner with Juniper Networks to other recent news. "We don't know for sure if one thing has to do with the other, Cisco's recent move to expand into servers - traditional IBM turf - can't be winning John Chambers many friends at Big Blue.

GigaOm noted that new IBM "cloud czar" Erich Clementi now reports directly to CEO Sam Palmisano: "With this reporting change, IBM is signaling that cloud computing isn’t a mere services play, but has broad potential for enterprise IT."

eWeek also focuses on the new management structure for cloud computing: "There had been plenty of separate 'cloud-related' point products, 'customer wins' and peripheral announcements, but the fact remained: If a potential customer wanted to talk to IBM about building a cloud computing system, there was no actual door on which to knock."

Reuven Cohen examines the cloud interoperability aspect of IBM's announcement: "What I find most telling about this news is the technical approach that IBM and Juniper have chosen to go with. ... a hardware based virtual private lan which allows any-to-any (multipoint) connectivity in conjunction to a Multi-Protocol Label Switching (MPLS) system." 

Information Week's Plug Into the Cloud site "notes that "IBM is methodically expanding its cloud platform capabilities. But let's be clear - it's doing so with a focus on enterprise-class products and services, not on the broader market targeted by Amazon, Google, and others."