Mysteries of the Cloud discussed

A roomful of north west entrepreneurs packed in to hear about the latest in cutting edge technology last night at an event organised to help de-mystify Cloud computing.
The evening, hosted by Northern Startup 20, was aimed at those working in or setting up digital companies in Manchester and further afield.

Organiser Manoj Ranaweera explained the thinking behind the session: “It’s easy to get lost in all the talk about cloud computing. Everybody seems to have a cloud, connects to the cloud, is cloud-enabled, or at the least, is cloud-ready. There’s a lot of jargon, but it’s not all fluff and buzz. Behind that jargon are some very real business and technology benefits.”
Speakers included Bindi Karia, Head of the Microsoft BizSpark programme which aims to connect technology start-ups to an online ecosystem and Simone Brunozzi from Amazon Web Services who introduced his company’s services.
Venture capitalist Ivan Farneti told the gathered audience at the eOffice in Portland Street, that Cloud computing provided big opportunities for tech companies.
“People ask where’s the money? Well I would say there’s two area 1. enhance the Cloud, develop software, build development tools and 2. exploit the Cloud – it’s a big wave and there’s money to be made.”
The expert speakers, who also included Tim Barker, Senior Director EMEA , also took part in a panel question and answer session, which looked at issues of responsibility in a supply chain and the need for fast broadband connections to make Cloud a reality to UK home and business users.
See extracts from the panel debate in the video clip below.

What’s your view on the Cloud? The big hope in the sky or pie in the sky without more infra-structure? Let us know below.
The next Northern Startup 2.0 event is Exits and Fund Raising – Stories by Tech Entrepreneurs on Monday, April 20.
Slideshow thanks to Julia at Lake Star Media on Flickr.