The COVID
pandemic caused many businesses to accelerate their digital transformation
strategies, causing them to move part or all of their data to the cloud.
Businesses can choose to work with hyperscalers or they can choose to work with
an alternative cloud provider. But where can these alternative providers source
the technologies, products and services they need to successfully deliver
to customers a simple and affordable cloud experience? The answer: Virtuozzo.
To learn more, VMblog spoke with Alex Fine,
Virtuozzo's CEO (both Chief Executive Officer and Chief Energy Officer).
VMblog: What does Virtuozzo specialize in today?
Alex Fine: Today, Virtuozzo is a global leader in cloud
enablement software for alternative cloud providers, offering easy-to-use,
flexible and affordable solutions for public, private and hybrid clouds.
VMblog: How has Virtuozzo evolved over the past 20+
years?
Fine: Virtuozzo was initially a virtualization product under
the company Parallels before it spun off to become its own private company in
2015. Part of our legacy involves being a pioneer in container technology that
we offered to the hosting provider market in 2001. Additionally, our work in
the open-source Linux community initiated throughout these years established us
as a top contributor to and sponsor of relevant
projects.
However, our company today is very different. We have evolved, expanding
beyond virtualization technology into complementary areas, namely alternative
cloud offerings, that are critical to helping our service provider partners grow,
transform and thrive.
We recently acquired Jelastic and OnApp, providing us with a powerful
multicloud Platform-as-a-Service (PaaS) layer as well as cloud management
platform capabilities. Bringing such capabilities in-house completes Virtuozzo's
core technology stack, allowing us to deliver the industry's first fully integrated, easy-to-use
and cost-efficient cloud solution designed for cloud service providers, managed
service providers, hosting service providers and their small and medium-sized
business customers. These
acquisitions further
strengthen Virtuozzo's position overall as a leader in the rapidly growing
alternative cloud industry.
VMblog: Who does Virtuozzo sell to?
Fine: Virtuozzo's primary customers, referred to as partners,
are cloud service providers, managed service providers and hosting service providers.
We develop the technologies, products and services designed to their
operational needs. For example, TLine, a leading managed cloud service provider, integrated Virtuozzo Hybrid
Infrastructure into its easy-to-use cloud marketplace in just one week, and, in
turn, reduced time-to-market for end-users from months to hours.
VMblog: Why does Virtuozzo refer to its customers as
partners?
Fine: We are partners
in delivering cloud solutions to the service providers' end-customers. We also go
well beyond the traditional customer-vendor relationship. We help our partners
solve complex business and technology challenges to open new revenue streams that
can make them more profitable. We believe that this type of relationship is
unique to Virtuozzo and is a significant differentiator.
We have created a direct mutual feedback loop with our partners. Their
feedback strategically influences our roadmap; and our
feedback helps them benchmark their business against their successful peers
from different regions.
Joe's Datacenter and TLine offer two examples of how we work with
our partners. Partnering with
Virtuozzo helps Joe Morgan, founder of Joe's Datacenter, reduce cost and
complexity for its customers - MSPs, SMEs and enterprise customers - and
provide a better alternative to hyperscale clouds. TLine's experience with us
helped the service provider accelerate its Anything-as-a-Service vision, cutting
its infrastructure costs by 300%, and increasing
its margin by 30%.
VMblog: What do you believe is the future of the alternative
cloud industry?
Fine: Depending on who you count as a hyperscaler, the market
share of alternative cloud providers today is 20% to 40%. We see the ratio
between hyperscalers and alternative cloud providers has stabilized, while the
entire IaaS and PaaS market, estimated today at $160B, is growing annually in
excess of 25%. So, there is a huge opportunity for alternative cloud providers
that is truly unlimited.
We believe that alternative cloud providers are going to
stay relevant in the cloud landscape. Why? It comes down to the relationships
that they can build with their customers, unlike the hyperscalers which are primarily
automated. In a world that is becoming more and more automated, the value of
human relationships is not disappearing. It is becoming more important.
Additionally, alternative service providers can, in many
cases, offer better compliance with local regulations on data sovereignty than
hyperscalers as well as work with their customers on tailored technology solutions
and pricing. You might also be surprised to learn that alternative service
providers can offer better performance and even better availability than
hyperscalers who are set up to serve customers without any special demands.
So, the future and opportunity for alternative cloud
providers is bright, but it is indeed a competitive market. There are options
for end customers, so service providers need a comprehensive solution and
enablement partner to win. Virtuozzo is that partner.
VMblog: What do alternative cloud providers need from
their cloud enablement partner?
Fine: We see
several key trends. First, service providers need a solution that is simple to
manage both for them and for their customers. Then, they want a comprehensive
solution...meaning, instead of cobbling together numerous components from various
vendors, they want a single solution that includes virtualization (with
options), storage (with all supported protocols), orchestration, self-service,
multi-tiering and metering. On top of that, maximum automation of routine tasks
is a definite advantage. Finally, service providers want a broader set of
products to offer their end users.
Virtuozzo
delivers on these trends, ensuring that the technologies we offer are
easy-to-use, flexible and affordable. We are also a "one-stop shop" for Anything-as-a-Service (XaaS) solutions, making
it easier for our partners to develop and manage whatever they may need for
their customers.
VMblog: How is Virtuozzo different from others in the
industry?
Fine: We differ in three distinct ways:
- We truly are easy-to-use and cost-efficient
at the same time.
- We offer the industry's first fully
integrated cloud solution specifically designed for service providers.
- We are true partners, helping service
providers solve difficult challenges while establishing new revenue streams for
increased profitability. At the end of the day, the relationship is really what
sets us apart.
VMblog: Where can readers learn more about Virtuozzo?
Fine: More company
information and resources can be found at www.virtuozzo.com.
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