China-based technology conglomerate Huawei Technologies is looking to sell its x86 server business to a consortium of buyers due to the company not being able to secure server processors because of U.S. sanctions, according to a Bloomberg report.

Due to the sanctions the U.S. government implemented against Huawei in recent years, the Chinese IT giant is in advanced talks to sell its server business to a group of buyers for likely hundreds of millions of dollars, according to the report by Bloomberg.

The issue mainly stems from U.S. sanctions that made Huawei unable to buy x86 chips from Intel, Bloomberg said, citing people familiar with the matter.

[Related: Pure Storage CRO, Former VMware Exec Jumps Ship To Nutanix]

Huawei is looking to sell to a consortium that includes at least one government-backed buyer, with several possible buyers from the Chinese government and the private sector engaging with the company over the past few months, said Bloomberg. Huawei did not respond to a request for comment by press time.

Huawei has dropped off IDCs worldwide server market-share leader list in recent quarters.

The company failed to crack the top five global market-share revenue leaders list in IDCs second-quarter 2021 Worldwide Quarterly Server Tracker, meaning Huaweis sever business generated less than $1 billion in server sales on a global basis, while also shipping less than 150,000 server units worldwide during the quarter, according to data from IDC.

Huawei has hit tough financial times since the U.S. banned American companies from supplying certain components to the company.

Huawei recently reported third fiscal quarter revenue of $21.2 billion, representing a 38 percent drop in sales year over year. This represents the companys fourth straight quarter of declining sales.

In addition, Huawei needed to sell its Honor smartphone business to the Shenzhen government last year after the U.S. banned American companies from supplying certain components, such as 5G chips, to Huawei.

It is key to note that Huaweis x86 server line was not a core group for the company, as Huawei has developed its own servers for cloud computing powered by ARM-based processors.

Two potential buyers of Huaweis x86 server business are China-based Henan Information Industry Investment Co., which is state-owned and has partnered with Huaweis server group, as well as Chinese asset management company Huaqin Technology, according to Bloomberg.

Looking at the worldwide server market landscape, Dell Technologies and Hewlett Packard Enterprise alongside China-based H3C have been two dominant leaders on a global basis for the past several years.

Worldwide server market revenue declined 2.5 percent year over year to $23.6 billion during the second quarter of 2021, while 3.2 million servers were shipped, representing flat growth.

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Huawei Selling x86 Server Business Due To US Sanctions: Report - CRN

Last week, Raja Koduri went to Twitter to explain Intel's intent to discontinue the focus on Intel Xe-HP and implement that technology to the newer Intel Xe-HPG GPUs, a newer and more focused ecosystem that they have a five-year plan of growth for developments in AI, gaming and visual cloud-based technology, and higher optimization and performance. This was surprising to a large audience due to the amount of time spent on discussing Intel Xe-HP publicly.

Intel's Xe-HP GPU was originally announced during the middle of 2020, advertised as a "multi-tile graphics series designed for data centers, with the main purpose as media super-computer accelerators." Intel has even gone as far as creating three separate offerings with between "1 to 4 tiles." It will now help Intel for utilizing the Intel Xe-HPs for their own in-house cloud servers.

Apple Silicon Mac Pro to Feature a Variation of the M1 Max, According to the Latest Report

Koduri went on to further explain that Xe-HP GPU would help develop the "ecosystem for Ponte Vecchio's architecture." As far as product lines go, the Xe-HPG lines will replace Xe-HP, adding "AI interference and visual cloud" technology, which was the original intent of Xe-HP.

It is speculated that, due to the focus of Intel Xe-HPG on media in terms of analytics, processing, immersion, and cloud technology, such as cloud gaming and cloud graphics, that Intel is beginning to compete with GeForce NOW, Google Stadia, or Amazon Luna.

What is interesting to note, however, is the usage of media conversion servers/video content providers. Intel was one of the largest hardware providers for the last World Olympics held in Tokyo, Japan. Intel's Xeon servers were the primary utilization to help stream an unbelievable 8K 60fps HDR video that was transferred and implemented directly to the cloud to televisions everywhere. Even though a large group of consumers was unable to access the full resolution capabilities of the signal, the fact that this technology is now available is proof that we have evolved yet again to what is possible.

Lastly, Koduri also discussed Intel Xe-HPG is planned to support high-end applications such as 3DS Max, extending their Xe-HPG to the high-end workstation sections. It could be implied at some point that the Xe-HPG microarchitecture will be accessible for to up to three different markets, just as the same as their competitors NVIDIA and AMD with their Ampere and RDNA2 architectures, respectably.

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Intel Xe-HPG GPU: Aiming The Gaming & Visual Cloud-Based Segment With a Focus on AI & Superior Performance - Wccftech

DUBLIN, Nov. 4, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- The "Cloud Music Services Market - Forecasts from 2021 to 2026" report has been added to ResearchAndMarkets.com's offering.

The cloud music services market is expected to grow at a compound annual growth rate of 29.48% over the forecast period to reach a market size of US$19.158 billion in 2026 from US$3.140 billion in 2019.

Cloud music services allow users to save their music collections on the cloud as well as on local storage devices and stream music across many devices. These services usually operate on a freemium basis, which allows users to store data for free up to a specific amount before having to pay a small fee to utilise cloud services. Many cloud services feature user interfaces that let users access music from a range of devices, including MP3 players, laptops, cellphones, gaming consoles, and setup boxes. Using the servers, one can make a number of playlists and listen to them from anywhere.

Cloud has revolutionized the music industry and how people listen to digital music. The smartphone has largely become the device of choice for allowing cloud-based music services due to its increasing penetration and coverage. According to the IFPI Global Music Report 2021, total streaming revenues increased by 19.9% to $13.4 billion, accounting for 62.1% of total global recorded music revenue.

Cloud music services are generally used to expand music access by overcoming constraints imposed by device storage space or lack of ownership. Streaming, subscription, and other cloud services provide listeners service agreements that allow them to rent music for a charge or under specific circumstances. One of the main trends predicted to gain momentum in the cloud music services market is the rising incorporation of analytics in the music business. Record labels can give clients a personalised music experience thanks to the help of curators, editors, and

Growth Factors

Rising use of smartphones

The adoption of cloud music services is rising at a faster rate as the use of smartphones grows. It solves the problem of saving tracks on a smartphone. With the use of a smartphone, the user can listen to his favourite music whenever he wants. As the number of smartphones grows, so does the use of mobile cloud services, resulting in a growth in the mobile cloud services market. Furthermore, with enhanced mobile network technology, users can have high-speed internet access to playlists on the cloud, which is expected to drive the cloud music service market.

Restraints

High bandwidth with fast streaming

High-speed network bandwidth is required to stream music online, and a stable network is required to maintain continuously streaming. Many developing nations lack strong network connections, which might have a negative impact on the market for cloud music services. Furthermore, in the coming years, efforts by telecommunications and government services to establish extensive network connectivity may overcome the constraints. Furthermore, because it is customary for users to share their IDs and password, the privacy connected with the music collection might be a big stumbling block for the market.

COVID-19 Impact

The COVID-19 pandemic is forecasted to have a positive influence on the cloud music services market, as all kinds of entertainment have gone online due to the outbreak. People were compelled to adapt to new kinds of media due to the lack of movement and the closing of all entertainment centres, resulting in the rise of streaming services.

Key Topics Covered:

1. Introduction

2. Research Methodology

3. Executive Summary

4. Market Dynamics4.1. Market Drivers4.2. Market Restraints4.3. Porter's Five Forces Analysis4.3.1. Bargaining Power of Suppliers4.3.2. Bargaining Power of Buyers4.3.3. The Threat of New Entrants4.3.4. Threat of Substitutes4.3.5. Competitive Rivalry in the Function4.4. Function Value Chain Analysis

5. Cloud Music Services Market Analysis, By Type 5.1. Introduction5.2. Downloadable5.3. Subscription5.4. Streaming

6. Cloud Music Services Market Analysis, By Geography

7. Competitive Environment and Analysis7.1. Major Players and Strategy Analysis7.2. Emerging Players and Market Lucrativeness7.3. Mergers, Acquisitions, Agreements, and Collaborations7.4. Vendor Competitiveness Matrix

8. Company Profiles8.1. Apple, Inc.8.2. Spotify8.3. Amazon8.4. Pandora8.5. Sound Cloud8.6. KKBOX8.7. Youtube8.8. Deezer SA8.9. Saavn LLC8.10. Gaana.com

For more information about this report visit https://www.researchandmarkets.com/r/bfn74x

Media Contact:

Research and Markets Laura Wood, Senior Manager [emailprotected]

For E.S.T Office Hours Call +1-917-300-0470 For U.S./CAN Toll Free Call +1-800-526-8630 For GMT Office Hours Call +353-1-416-8900

U.S. Fax: 646-607-1907 Fax (outside U.S.): +353-1-481-1716

SOURCE Research and Markets

http://www.researchandmarkets.com

Continued here:
The Worldwide Cloud Music Services Industry is Expected to Reach $19+ Billion by 2026 - PRNewswire

If youve been following this migration article series, you should be ready to move onto the next phase of your journey getting to the good stuff and migrating your workloads.

Before we get there, let's quickly recap all the things you should have in place before you kick off your migration.

1. You know what your security and compliance goals are, and what services you can (or can't) use in your cloud architecture.

2. You have deployed a couple of tools that will make the migration journey just a little bit easier.

3. You understand your total cost of ownership (TCO)

4. You know what you will be doing with each application during the migration and which of the six migration strategies youll follow for each application.

5. Youve reviewed your operations and determined if any changes need to be made to effectively migrate to the cloud and manage the environment when you are there.

6. Shared responsibility, this is key. You might have read about this before, go read it again .

Okay, so you are now ready to kick off the migration, but how do you make it as easy as possible while ensuring there is very little to no downtime of your applications?

Jaco Venter, head of the cloud management at BBD, an international software development company with expertise in cloud enablement services, says while there are quite a few options that could help you make the AWS move to cloud a little easier, there are two strategies that he believes work very well.

CloudEndure

A tool from AWS, CloudEndure has two primary functions: Disaster recovery and migrations.

The migration component is called AWS Application Migration Service (AWS MGN).

Using a component such as AWS MGN allows you to maintain normal business operations throughout the replication process while you migrate to the cloud. Basically, because it continuously replicates source servers, there is little to no performance impact on your operations during this process. Continuous replication also makes it easy to conduct non-disruptive tests and shorten cutover windows while you move the network identity to the cloud computer.

AWS MGN reduces overall migration costs with no need to invest in multiple migration solutions, specialised cloud development or application-specific skills because it can be used to lift and shift any application from any source infrastructure that runs supported operating systems (OS), explains Venter.

Here's an example of how the process works:

Implementation begins by installing the AWS Replication Agent on your source servers. Once it's installed, you can view and define the replication settings. AWS MGN uses these settings to create and manage a staging area subnet with lightweight Amazon EC2 instances that act as replication servers and as low-cost staging Amazon EBS volumes.

These replication servers receive data from the agent running on your source servers and write this data to the staging Amazon EBS volumes. Your replicated data is compressed and encrypted in transit and can be encrypted at rest using EBS encryption. AWS MGN keeps your source servers up to date on AWS using continuous, block-level data replication. It uses your defined launch settings to launch instances when you conduct non-disruptive tests or perform a cutover.

When you launch test or cutover instances, the service automatically converts your source servers to boot and run natively. After confirming that your launched instances are operating properly, you can decommission your source servers. You can then choose to modernise your applications by leveraging additional services and capabilities. In a nutshell, utilising components such as the AWS Application Migration Service during your migration means that you can keep your operations running while simultaneously moving them to the cloud its a great trick for ensuring a smooth transition to the cloud.

He adds that AWS MGN is also a great option for lift and shift projects, but with these you might be modernising your application and therefore cant just simply replicate and decommission on the one side and switch on the new environment without any interventions.

Thats where services such as Route 53 come in.

Amazon Route 53 is a highly available and scalable cloud domain name system (DNS) web service. It is designed to give software engineers and businesses an extremely reliable and cost-effective way to route end-users to internet applications by translating names like http://www.example.com into the numeric IP addresses such as 192.0.2.1. Why does this need to happen? DNS web services are important because they are what computers use to connect to each other.

Using Route 53's DNS routing function means you can manage what environment your users will connect to a handy tip if youre wanting to make sure that your end-users have no disruption or break in what theyre viewing through your migration. At the point where you have completed your internal testing and are ready to switch over to your new cloud environment, DNS routing allows you to redirect traffic so that your users seamlessly connect to the new environment. During this process your users won't be impacted and are able to simply continue operating as if nothing changed.

In the event that something does not quite go as planned (And it can happen! remarks Venter), you can redirect traffic back to your previous environment, allowing you to address any challenges then switch back to the new cloud set-up once again.

A migration plan is all about mitigating risk and ensuring there are clearly defined metrics of what "good" looks like. Its also about knowing at what point you should deem the project a success and when to roll back. Whats that old adage? Failing to plan is planning to fail.

One last tip from Venter and BBD: Make it easy to roll back if you have to.

If youre in need of a cloud partner to guide you through the tools, compliancy, strategies, operational changes and downtime dependencies reach out to BBD for more on itscloud enablement services.

More here:
Tips and tricks to minimise downtime while you migrate to the cloud - ITWeb

Kyndryl, a managed services giant spun off from IBM, will officially become a publicly traded independent company on Wednesday and the company has a long to-do list that includes boosting innovation, delivering revenue growth and forging a cohesive employee culture.

Martin Schroeter, CEO of Kyndryl, said at the company's inaugural investor day that Kyndryl will "ramp up our focus on innovation, going after new market opportunity and using our experience and our IP to benefit our customers."

In the meantime, Kyndryl will remain known for being the largest integrator with $19.1 billion in revenue as well as 90,000 employees. According to Gartner, Kyndryl will be the largest implementation services leader followed by DXC, Atos, Fujitsu and Accenture.

Kyndryl operates in 63 countries, manages 750,000 virtual servers, 270,000 network devices and 25,000 SAP and Oracle systems.

Schroeter's plan revolves around extending its implementation and managed services into other areas with more growth. Here's a look at the plan, markets and potential growth through 2024. In short, Kyndryl will ride intelligent automation, data services, cloud services and security to deliver more value and enable digital transformation.

The argument for Kyndryl is that companies are starting their digital transformations and the company has time to expand even as it simplifies customer infrastructure. Schroeter also said Kyndryl will offer an ESG platform and strategy to address customers' environmental, social and governance challenges.

Among the key areas Kyndryl aims to address:

Indeed, Kyndryl has the customer base to expand. It has more than 4,000 customers and only 15% of revenue comes from the top 10. Kyndryl counts 75% of the Fortune 100 as customers and the average customer relationship is more than 10 years.

But the challenge will be pivoting Kyndryl story from implementation to innovation.

Kyndryl's investor day revolved around convincing Wall Street that the company was a solid investment. IBM shareholders will receive one Kyndryl share for every 5 IBM shares held. Kyndryl shares are distributed after market close on Nov. 3 with trading under the KD ticker on Nov. 4.

As for the balance sheet, Kyndryl will start with $2 billion in cash and $3.2 billion of debt with an incremental $3 billion credit facility.

The revenue streams for Kyndryl are also predictable. The company said that about 85% of its expected revenue is under contract at the start of every year. In addition, ABN Amro recently announced a $400 million tech services deal with Kyndryl.

Wall Street analysts were generally cautious following Kyndryl's investor day. For instance, Wedbush analyst Moshe Katri said in a research note that Kyndryl will need to manage cannibalization to its services business and cut costs with restructuring. "We see a long and challenging road for a recovery at Kyndryl," said Katri.

Perhaps the biggest issue facing Kyndryl is that it must operate in an environment that's moving toward cloud models with little capital investment up front and a heavy dose of automation. Simply put, Kyndryl has its own transformation to deliver.

Kyndryl doesn't expect revenue growth until 2025 and there is potential sales contraction leading up to that date. Stifel Nicolaus analyst David Grossman said there are multiple opportunities to expand as Kyndryl expands its ecosystem and partnerships.

Kyndryl's management team is roughly split between IBM executives, external hires and IBM alums and external hires. The diversified set of opinions and experiences is something that can set Kyndryl apart, said Schroeter.

Indeed, Kyndryl's executive team includes former CIOs of State Street, GE and NBC Universal.

The company's name is derived from the words kinship and tendril to evoke growth and working together well.

At the Kyndryl investor day, executives emphasized that culture and people were the core assets for success. Kyndryl noted that its employees are continually learning, earning certifications and badges and reskilling on the fly.

More importantly, Kyndryl has been expanding its skillsets in Amazon Web Services, Microsoft Azure and Google Cloud. Those skills will be critical to making Kyndryl a broader player.

To celebrate the spin-off, Kyndryl will plant a tree for each employee. The company will also aim to build a purpose-driven firm from the ground up.

Excerpt from:
Kyndryl set for IBM spin-off: Can it grow ecosystem, innovation and revenue? - SmartPlanet.com