Page 30 - Security Today, May/June 2024

In The Clouds
Six top security integrators talk about why their customers are moving to cloud video surveillance
By Ken Francis
Video data storage in the cloud was a novel concept when Dean Drako founded Eagle Eye Networks back in 2012. While cloud was be- ing used for almost all other business systems at that time, the physical security industry took a cautious and measured approach to cloud adoption.
Twelve years later, that has changed. Today, cloud is firmly established in our industry, and the Security Industry Association (SIA) has regularly recognized the cloud movement as a top trend in its annual Security Megatrends report.
This year marks a turning point for cloud. In its 2024 Security Megatrends report, SIA identifies cloud technology as a “foun- dational trend.”
According to SIA researchers, foundational trends are “so much part of the fabric of the world that they are viewed no longer as fu- ture-looking megatrends, but instead as common concerns that all business leaders must manage as they operate within our industry.”
Cloud adoption is no longer plodding. In fact, industry ana-
lyst group Novaira Insights forecasts that the number of cloud- connected cameras will grow at a brisk 80% CAGR in North America through 2026.
Cloud is here to stay and the migration from on-prem to cloud is picking up speed, but it’s also true that we have a long way to go before cloud video surveillance systems outnumber traditional on-prem systems.
We believe about 10 percent of video surveillance systems are storing data in the cloud today. That leaves an enormous address- able market for cloud video surveillance. That means that cloud evangelists still have work to do, and this translates into a tremen- dous opportunity for resellers to expand their business by helping their customers make the move to cloud video surveillance.
CORE MOTIVATORS FOR MOVE TO CLOUD
What is driving organizations to start storing their video surveil- lance data in the cloud? The core motivators have remained the same since the beginning and include, lower total cost of own-
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MAY/JUNE 2024 | SECURITY TODAY
Photo Courtesy of Eagle Eye Networks
DATA STORAGE