Today at VMworld 2014 Europe, VMware, Inc. announced that it plans to bring VMware vCloud Air (previously VMware vCloud Hybrid Service™), hybrid cloud platform to Germany. Complementing VMware’s UK location and vCloud Air Network of service provider options, the new VMware-operated data center will provide customers with a Central European location that addresses German and EU compliance and data sovereignty regulations. General availability is planned in the first quarter of 2015.
In addition, VMware announced its plans for an Early Access Program for VMware vCloud Air Virtual Private Cloud OnDemand with an expanded footprint in North America and Europe. VMware vCloud Air Virtual Private Cloud will provide customers with on-demand access to vCloud Air with the swipe of a credit card.
“Since introducing VMware vCloud Air a year ago, VMware has made significant strides to provide customers with a hybrid cloud platform they know and trust,” said Bill Fathers, executive vice president and general manager, Cloud Services Business Unit, VMware. “As we continue to expand VMware vCloud Air into new markets, with more services than ever before, we are only just scratching the surface of what the service will become the industry’s leading hybrid cloud platform for delivering innovation as a service from the data center to the desktop and mobile applications.”
Data privacy, security and sovereignty continue to remain high on the list of customer concerns, even as IT organizations increasingly turn to public cloud to enable their business. The new vCloud Air location in Germany will help VMware’s European customers address local data privacy, security and sovereignty issues, while enabling them to take advantage of a public cloud from a global leader.
A recent survey of more than 225 senior IT administrators in Germany (commissioned by VMware and conducted by Ilkin Borg) revealed that 93 percent of respondents believe that the location of their cloud provider is important and that it becomes the central criterion in the selection of a suitable provider. In addition, the survey found that 71 percent of respondents want a solution that makes managing the public cloud as easy as managing their own infrastructure[i].