The Cloud Object Storage Market in 2022

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Cloud object storage is a method of storing unstructured data in the cloud. Object-based storage is one the most common storage modes for the clouds, due to its flexible and scalable capabilities.

Object storage in the cloud enables users to group numerous devices into a single storage pool that can be accessed from multiple locations remotely. Companies that regularly handle large amounts of data tend to use this type of cloud storage.

See below to learn all about the global cloud object storage market:

Cloud object storage market

In 2020, the cloud object storage market had an estimated value of $4.83 billion. Expected to maintain a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 13.6%, the market is forecast to reach $13.65 billion by 2028.

Regionally, North America had the largest market in 2021, accounting for 32% of the market’s annual revenue. Additionally, it’s expected to achieve the highest growth rate, at 21% over the forecast period from 2018 to 2026. 

The growth expectations are also high for the Asia-Pacific region and parts of western Europe. However, they dip in the MENA and Latin America regions. 

By industry, the banking, financial services, and insurance (BFSI) industry accounted for the highest rates of revenue in the global cloud object storage market, as of 2020. It was closely followed by the social media, IT, and telecommunications sectors.

Other notable end-user sectors in the market include:

  • Government
  • Manufacturing
  • Health care
  • Life sciences
  • Retail and consumer goods
  • Media and entertainment

Cloud object storage features

Cloud object storage is a data storage architecture that’s suitable for unstructured data, such as email, media, web pages, and sensor data. It works by treating every piece of data as an object, keeping it in a separate storehouse along with its metadata.

Object storage in the cloud has numerous uses for companies with massive amounts of incoming unstructured data to store short- and long-term.

Internet of Things

Object storage supports machine-to-machine data transformation produced by Internet of Things (IoT) devices. It enables machine learning, artificial intelligence (AI), and advanced analytics systems to treat the data for insights and actionable information.

Cloud-native apps

Object-based storage provides an effective persistent cloud storage option for cloud-native apps. It provides access over the internet, allowing mobile apps, in particular, to run smoothly.

Big data analytics

Object cloud storage is effective for performing big data analytics, accessing the unstructured data in the cloud, and extracting insights.

Data archiving and backup

Cloud object storage offers a low-cost, long-term data storage and archiving option for companies. Simultaneously, it keeps the data accessible, without compromising on scalability, security, or durability.

Benefits of cloud object storage

Object cloud storage models are versatile. As cloud-based solutions, they can be used by companies regardless of size and industry, without sacrificing the quality or security of their data.

A few notable benefits of cloud object storage include:

  • Scalability
  • Fast data retrieval for access and backup recovery
  • Cost-effective
  • Allows for metadata customization
  • Flexible management and centralized control
  • Remote access over the internet
  • Streamlines security and regulatory compliance requirement

“From cost to scalability, today’s object storage solutions are hard to beat — particularly for high-volume, high-complexity log data. … In a nutshell, cloud costs typically go down sharply when moving to this type of architecture,” says Todd Persen, a member of the Forbes Technology Council.

“Finally, with object storage, queries, reads, and writes can happen almost instantaneously. Because work is distributed across potentially thousands of disks simultaneously, I/O performance bottlenecks that would occur with fewer disks simply disappear.”

Cloud object storage use cases

The following case studies show organizations in different industries are using cloud object storage solutions to help reduce costs and boost productivity and growth:

Herman IT

Herman IT is a provider of data center services dedicated to high-performance computing, multicloud, hybrid cloud, and private cloud models. Based in Finland, Herman IT provides sustainable and efficient ways of storing, securing, and using data.

In order to maintain an edge over the rising competition, Herman IT was looking to employ the latest technology in their offerings to clients. One common pain point for clients was fast-growing data and the inability to afford reliable and secure storage.

Herman IT developed their own data archiving, backup, and recovery service using IBM Cloud Object Storage. This allowed them to facilitate fast, secure, reliable, and affordable access and storage of data.

“We’re demonstrating how IBM Cloud Object Storage can keep data warm — that is, ready to access — while offering low storage costs, virtually unlimited scalability, and non-stop availability,” says Veli-Antti Leinonen, sales manager, Herman IT.

“Data represents competitive advantage for many companies but also a major cost and source of risk. Our new data backup and archive service uses IBM Cloud Object Storage to enable fast, secure, reliable access to data.”

Herman IT was able to simplify compliance, reduce costs, and increase storage capabilities for their customers as well as expand the company’s market share.

University of Leicester

The University of Leicester is a public research university based in Leicester, England. 

Handling the data of about 30,000 students and faculty members in their systems, the university was struggling to keep up with the increase in unstructured data using their backup infrastructure.

Looking to upgrade their data storage solutions, Leicester decided to switch to Cloudian’s HyperStore S3-compatible object storage system. 

“With Cloudian, I liked that I could try it in a VM and install it myself on my laptop in 15 minutes. It gave us confidence that we could easily manage the Cloudian system,” says Mark Penny, systems specialist, University of Leicester.

“We did a lot to try and break it, including testing a total hardware replacement, even though that’s something we’d never actually do. It wasn’t a problem at all. Everything just worked.”

Cloudian’s solution was compatible with the university’s Commvault-based backup, and it was also able to reduce storage requirements by 50% and reduce costs by around 25%.

BriteSky

BriteSky is a computer hardware manufacturer that offers integrated and custom information and data network solutions for enterprises. Based in Ottawa, Canada, the company helps clients better store and manage their data, ensuring an uninterrupted business flow.

A number of BriteSky’s clients were worried about meeting the continually changing data privacy and security laws. Looking to help clients avoid severe penalties and fines, BriteSky wanted to improve their own cloud offerings.

BriteSky decided to rely on NetApp StorageGRID Object Storage to help clients comply with Canada’s data sovereignty laws.

“It was just astronomical, the amount of data we had to deal with. We needed a platform that was better designed for that longer retention cycle of data and allowed the data to be replicated across multiple sites easily,” says Richard Losier, VP of technology, BriteSky.

“When we look at what our customers want, where IT is going, and what problems people are trying to solve, I look at the NetApp Data Fabric story and say, ‘Finally, a solution.’”

BriteSky was able to help clients meet local data laws. They were also able to design a platform that supports long data retention cycles and easy replication.

Cloud object storage providers

Some of the leading vendors in the cloud object storage market include:

  • AWS
  • Google
  • Microsoft
  • Dell Technologies
  • Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE)
  • Hitachi Data Systems
  • NetApp
  • Caringo
  • IBM
  • Datadirect Networks
Anina Ot
Anina Ot
Anina Ot is a contributor to Enterprise Storage Forum and Datamation. She worked in online tech support before becoming a technology writer, and has authored more than 400 articles about cybersecurity, privacy, cloud computing, data science, and other topics. Anina is a digital nomad currently based in Turkey.

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