Starting in 2018, 21Vianet will invest in new infrastructure to triple the capacity of Azure cloud in China. The company operates Microsoft’s platform in the country and deals with the complexity of Chinese law. Under the laws of the country, foreign cloud providers must partner with a local company to sell services. 21Vianet is Microsoft’s partner and the companies are trying to expand into what is a major cloud frontier. Cloud business is still relatively small in China, but the marketplace is set to explode. As in most sectors, tapping the Chinese market could mean huge business. Microsoft hopes to be first at the table. Azure currently has 80,000 customers in China, but Microsoft wants to be on the crest of the wave when the boom arrives.
Cloud Competition
I could argue it does not really matter as there seems enough cloud business for the three leaders to thrive. Certainly, China could play a significant role in deciding if Microsoft can ever overtake AWS.
