Cloud computing has certainly come a long way since its earliest days, when the U.S. government first pursued widespread implementation of the technological platform with 2009’s Cloud First Policy.
These days, most large tech-focused companies and smartphone apps have embraced the cloud as a secure, space- and cost-efficient way to store data.
In an effort to encourage more small businesses and start-ups to move data to their cloud computing servers, Google is now offering $100,000 in cloud computing credits to start-ups that join its Google Cloud Platform.
According to the New York Times, Google’s incentive is intended to make its cloud computing services more competitive with Amazon Web Services, which is currently the largest cloud computing provider.
To take advantage of Google’s incentive, a company must be less than five years old and must generate less than $500,000 in annual revenue, the New York Times reports. Google is hoping that these small companies will take advantage of the free cloud space, then stick with the Google Cloud Platform as they continue to grow, allowing Google to recoup its initial investment.
It remains to be seen if Google’s gamble on its cloud computing platform will help it surpass Amazon, as Amazon’s pioneering of the cloud allowed it to become the first choice among start-ups for cloud computing options.
Some of the companies that made their first forays into cloud computing with Amazon Web Services, like Dropbox and Netflix, have seen significant success, another factor that may still lure start-ups to Amazon instead of Google, the New York Times reports.
However, there’s still something to be said about the appeal of free cloud space for a new company that might not be able to afford to move to the cloud until it expands.