The cloud is full of the thought it propagates. It’s not about a new idea of providing computing power, but a business model around offering standard, metered services. But maybe the trend is that the cloud is fading; full of hot air. In Gartner’s newest ‘Top 10 Strategic Technologies for 2012’ Cloud computing has fallen from the top spot it had the last 2 years to number 10. But what comes out of this article is that its ideas will stand. Like for instance with the launch of Apple’s iCloud it was clear to me that there is a connection between mobile apps and cloud. And also with, for instance, the efficiency of data centres and big data. These all uses the principle of the cloud.

In my opinion the future will result to a complete fade of the cloud. The cloud will merge with other developments in the future. Most IT will dissolve into services like that of Utilities (water, gas and electricity). And therein lies also its fallback. These ‘utility services’ have to cover a specific need, like the apps now do on your smartphone or tablet. And it needs to cover only those needs. When a greater need is covers it can only go wrong; there’s either a shortage of functionality or a surplus of it.

Because of those ‘delimited’ services, a whole different way of working arises in the world of Software Developers. These companies need to evolve into Service Integrators; there services don’t directly have to be related with cloud computing. But it will support another way of working; working in short cycles for standard work packages.

How do I see this? Well at first there is the fusion of services already in place. Google Apps (like Gmail) and Hotmail are already ‘in the cloud’ and nobody thought about it, or even worried about it. People are using applications like Evernote that are based in the cloud and the content is downloaded to your ‘app’ when you open the application. And now with Apple moving data into its iCloud it accelerates it even more.

In the near future more and more mobile apps will be dependent on an Internet connection to get the data or computing power it needs. Not only by downloading it, but by using it real time. Like updates on your flight schedules, but also your phone bill and even bank accounts. Those things will not stay on your phone or tablet, but have a small client running and using the cloud as its back office. It even looks like we are moving back to the client-server model, but with a better usage of the back office…

Tip: Keep your eyes open when using these cloud-based applications. There can always be a risk!

Thus, the cloud itself will increasingly fade the background, but its ideas will be incorporated in more and more applications.