AT&T will start offering cloud storage for web accessible devices, this month. AT&T Synaptic Storage is a storage-on-demand distribution and retrieval of their data from any location, anytimevia the web..
Customers will be able to specify their storage criteria -- called user policies -- through a web-based customer portal. The service automatically scales storage capacity up or down as needed, and users pay only for the amount they use.
AT&T has selected EMC Corporation, a world leader in information infrastructure solutions, as the technology provider for the underlying AT&T Synaptic Storage as a Service platform. The companies have signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) to jointly develop and market the service.
AT&T is introducing the service to customers on a controlled basis this month, with plans to make the service generally available in the third quarter. The service is deployed in AT&T Internet data centers (IDCs) in the U.S. and will be accessible by customers connecting to the Web anywhere. In time, AT&T plans to add the service to select global IDCs to meet customer demand internationally.
"The demand for data storage continues to grow at a staggering rate, driven by companies' need for 24x7 access to business critical data," said
Across the industry, businesses are struggling to find cost-effective approaches to manage large amounts of data generated by today's high bandwidth applications such as Web content, streaming media, distributed file sharing and medical imaging. In many cases, businesses invest in costly equipment for more data storage capacity, or they may adopt cumbersome and redundant data retrieval procedures.
AT&T's on-demand, network-based approach provides much needed assistance by eliminating the need for up-front capital investments for storage capacity while offering flexibility to meet changing business needs. AT&T Synaptic Storage as a Service is especially helpful for businesses with fluctuating data storage requirements. The service also is a great fit for extended retention of data no longer needed for transactions, which often can be provided at a fraction of the cost of managing data over a dedicated storage area network. The data can be retrieved at any time, to any customer location, including a third-party data center, using a variety of devices such as laptops, smart phones or other Web-enabled handheld devices.
Using EMC(R) Atmos(TM) technology, a policy-based information management platform, the AT&T Synaptic Storage as a Service gives users the flexibility to store, distribute and retrieve data through the Internet or directly from the AT&T network cloud via a virtual private network or other transport service, enabling customers to create a "virtual private storage cloud" protected by AT&T's industry's leading network-based security services.
"EMC is vigilant about delivering customers more choice, better control and increased efficiency in large-scale cloud storage environments," said
"Cloud storage holds out the promise of enabling a new generation of storage services with flexible, on-demand capabilities that address both runaway costs and a diverse combination of changing business priorities and regulatory requirements," said