The cloud is set to expand with the addition of major global telecommunications companies as Ovum (News - Alert) predicts they will become strong players in this field. Much of this growth will be driven by previously cautious end users adopting the platform in the next two to three years.

In its latest industry report, Ovum notes that AT&T, BT, Orange Business Services and Verizon (News - Alert) Business have made significant strides in this market in the past year. In terms of service, these players can now compete with established players from the IT industry. As these telecoms move in a competitive march toward cloud computing, they are gaining credibility in the field.

Peter Hall, report author and Ovum principal analyst, said: “The major telcos have a long heritage in providing managed data center services and hosting and have combined this with their networking and security expertise to meet the needs of customers for cloud computing services.”

Hall went on to notes that these players view cloud computing as a way to leverage their core competencies. Orange (News - Alert) has coined the term ‘IT operator’ to give an identity to its new role in IT services while also acknowledging its traditional role as a network operator.

Ovum believes that the global and major regional telcos are set to become strong players throughout the full range of cloud computing services, such as a Infrastructure-as-a-Service (IaaS) and Software-as-a-Service (SaaS (News - Alert)).

“But it’s still early days and telcos that have not yet developed a cloud computing strategy should not feel that they have missed the boat as the market is still embryonic and many end users are still cautious about cloud computing,” said Hall. “However, we expect to see interest pick up quite rapidly over the next two to three years, so the time is right for many telcos to be developing a strategy and roadmap for their entry to the market.”

In other Ovum news, the company acknowledged its recognition of NICE Systems (News - Alert), a provider of Insight from Interactions solutions and value-added services. Ovum has recognized their worldwide leadership position in its 2010 contact center analytics market report, “Decision Matrix: Selecting a Speech Analytics Vendor.”